Assignment: Paradise
by MSCIBET
Summary: Chloe decides to change up her life a little after high school. Chlex. This has been previously posted on N-S.
1. Goodbye

Title: Assignment: Paradise

Author: Superag

Rating: PG13

Disclaimer: Own nothing remotely related to Smallville, its characters, or any songs that inspire anything that I write. This is all my useless entertainment.

A/N – Was needing to get some romanticism out of my system and was inspired by a couple of songs by Kenny Chesney. Call me a beach bum too close to summer. Anyhoo, obviously we are in season 4 here, but there are no stones, no Jason, and no meteor shower. The rest will come as it does. Thanks for reading the fluff.

Goodbye – Chapter 1

Chloe sat and reread the small note on her desk in the Torch office before picking up her last box and turning off the lights. She smiled and walked out of the high school and sat in her car staring at the façade of the school longingly. It had been a pretty good four years. She had cracked some of the strangest stories known to man, been given a column for one of the best papers in the country, and had earned the respect of several job offers that she turned down. It was all behind her now. Graduation was the next day, and next year another editor would reach for the stars. The small note left behind was her swan song.

The next afternoon, Clark, his parents, and Lana waited impatiently as the time to line up for graduation crept closer. Clark 'looked' around, including the school building but found nothing out of place and no Chloe. "I'll be right back," he said to his parents as he guided Lana back into the school with him. He walked into the Torch office and saw everything still neatly in its place and laid out for the next person to take over.

"Clark," Lana said as she scanned the note and handed it to him. Clark sat down in the chair and read.

Dear Clark,

I'm pretty sure you are the one reading this, so here goes. Don't

wait up for me at graduation. A long time ago I had said that I wanted

something special for my life. And I have done some great things in

the last four years. But after dad died, I realized there really was no

where to go by remaining in Smallville. I love you and Lana both very

dearly and will miss you terribly, but I'm ready to move on to

something different. Life takes unusual turns now and then – this is

my turn. Please pick up my diploma and save it for my return, if and

when I do. Don't worry about me. I'm happy – I'm at peace and

looking forward to my next chapter to my life. Say hi to your parents

and Lana for me. Tell Lex I'll miss pushing his buttons and call Lois

and tell her I love her. Chloe

Clark and Lana stared at the small smiley face by her name and glanced at each other. Chloe had always had her own agenda. And she had a tough last couple of years. Assisting Lex in Lionel's incarceration and her subsequent kidnapping and terrorizing. Her father hadn't taken it as well. He suffered a heart attack around Christmas and passed away. Chloe had been beside herself not understanding where to go for help in straightening out his affairs. Lex felt obligated to pay back the favor of Chloe ridding him of his father. He reorganized her life and paid for the funeral. Clark knew Chloe always wondered if Lex had felt guilty since after her father's funeral, they never were as close as before.

"We should be going Clark," Lana stated as she touched his hand and they walked back out in to the sunlight of the May graduation. Staring back behind their seats, they sadly noted the empty seat with 'Sullivan' taped to it.

************

Chloe sat in the large leather seat and smiled up at the flight attendant, "Thank you." She sipped on her latte that costs her twice as much as it should, but she decided to take a risk and book first class. This was her new life. She looked out of the window at the tarmac of the Metropolis airport. She wondered if she would ever see the lights of the exciting and yet dangerous city again. She already seemed to miss the smells of the ink at the Daily Planet but needed something more. Leaning back in the chair, she slid the shade down and closed her eyes. Grasping her hands around the cup, she took a deep breath as she felt the wheels of the plane leave the ground.

Chloe had learned a lot from Lex after the death of her father. He had quietly and discretely met with her and his accountant and changed over all her father's assets and quickly covered what small debts he had. She had been grateful. He had been a different person since his father had been denied an appeal. After the funeral, though, things were different. She had noticed his change in disposition even before the funeral.

She remembered that when she had found her father in his chair, she panicked. Calling 911, the ambulance showed up and Clark and his parents met her at the hospital. It was three days before Christmas. She sat with her dad for three days with him on life support before pulling the plug on Christmas night. She had cried so hard that her tears had soaked through to the cheap mattress.

Opening her eyes, Chloe flinched in her seat remembering Lex's hand on her shoulder as Gabe left the earth. That night she finally knew that Lex was more than the man on the front of Fortune Magazine. He was a hurt young man who never got to heal.

She turned around and sobbed into his stomach, causing the light blue color in his shirt to darken. Lex handed her a tissue and took her arm gently, pulling her gently from the seat that she had held for 72 hours. "Give them some room," he whispered.

"But, he's my dad," she sobbed in between words as he continued to pull her into an empty corner of the hospital room. She halfway watched as Lex rubbed his hand down her back and let her continue to ruin his shirt.

"He was a great man, hard worker, honest," Lex calmly stated as Chloe's sobs started to slow to a general flow of tears without the hitches in her breath.

Chloe took a deep breath and stared up the man that she never quite trusted. "Why are you here on Christmas?"

"It's just another day – and you needed someone. And Gabe was a friend." Chloe looked up before taking another sob, burying herself into Lex's chest. Wrapping his arm around her, he carefully watched without emotion the nurses prep Gabe for the mortuary pick up.

He had driven her home that night and sat in the kitchen with her. Most of the night they never said a word to each other, just asking each other for refills on coffee. She had finally succumbed to sleep after three days and he watched her sleep until the next morning. Chloe remembered she woke to a note saying the coffee pot was on a timer and to call him for anything.

Falling asleep in the large plane seat, Chloe's thoughts faded into a deep sleep.

************

"Thank you," Clark hung up the phone and looked at his parents and Lana. "That was a car dealership downtown that said we could go pick up Lana's things they found in the trunk. Chloe sold her car."

Lana stared at Clark and then at his parents. "Why?"

"They didn't say. They said she went in right before they closed last night and sold it for cash, called a cab, and left. It's some dealership in Metropolis." Clark parents nodded their heads and smiled.

"Clark, I trust Chloe knows what she is doing and it's not your place to go looking for her. She asked for you two to give her some space. I would respect that," Jonathon stated as he squeezed Clark's shoulder. Gazing over in Martha's direction, he smiled and pulled her gently from her seat, leaving the two graduates to ponder their friend's decision.

"We should really talk to Lex – he would probably know what's going on," Lana suggested.

"Why? They haven't spoken two words since Chloe's dad's funeral."

"Clark, I'm just grasping at straws as much as you are. But I'm worried about her – Chloe's not one to just pack it in and disappear." Clark agreed and the two left for the mansion.

The two arrived at the mansion a little while later and knocked on the door. Lex leaned over and looked at the camera angle and proceeded to call for his man servant to let the two in. Clark and Lana walked into Lex's office and watched as his gaze on his computer didn't change. "Should you two be somewhere participating in underage drinking?"

"Lex, Chloe's missing." Lana stepped up to the desk and laid the note from the Trch down for him to examine.

The two stood and waited as Lex read over the letter and kind of smiled to himself behind the light blue paper. Nodding, he put the letter down and slid it back across his desk to Lana. "Interesting," Lex dropped as he went back to his computer.

"That's it? Come on Lex. She doesn't do this." Lana pleaded as Clark moved forward.

"This isn't Chloe. She had talked about her scholarship to Met U. She wouldn't just up and leave. And she sold her car to some dealership in Metropolis." Clark paced in the middle of the man's office.

"Evidently Clark, she is serious," Lex paused as he got up from his chair. "Look, Chloe is 18, a high school graduate, and for the record on her own now. She can do what she wants without consulting you two. Go to a graduation party and then worry about what you two will do with your lives. If Chloe wants to be found, she'll leave the trail."

Lex walked the two back to the front door, and reassured them again of her safety. "I'm sure she's fine." Lana and Clark stared at him as he shut the door and turned off the hallway light.

Standing in front of the mansion, Clark and Lana realized that Lex might be right. Calling his folks, Clark and Lana left for the nearest party as Lex and his parents both suggested.

Lex watched from the upstairs window and pulled up a bank on the computer. Typing in a couple of codes, he watched as several accounts that he had helped Chloe open with Gabe's old investments had been cleaned out and closed for cash. "So Chloe Sullivan, where are you?" Lex said to himself as all her accounts were now inactive.

***********

"May I help you," the woman with a thick accent asked the young blonde that was gliding her hand over the cases of pearls and other precious stones.

"Actually, I was hoping that I could fill this," she answered as she handed the woman the Help Wanted sign from the window.

TBC....


	2. Searching for Something More

Searching for Something More – Chapter 2

The woman looked Chloe over in her cotton sundress and bags in her hands and smiled, "I'm sorry honey. This is for a permanent position; I don't need any summer help."

Chloe glanced down at her appearance seeing what the woman was looking at and felt disgruntled. "I'm not looking for a temp job; I'm moving here." Chloe dropped her bag where she stood and looked at the woman and around the store again. "So, I'm going to need something to pay bills and those kinds of things. What do you say? I honestly haven't done retail, but would work harder than any other person on this island."

"My name is Safina, and I own the shop. These are my own creations and I have a little studio in the back. With the summer coming, I need more time in the studio and someone to watch the floor. It's pretty simple." Safina took Chloe's bags and disappeared into the studio with them. Returning, she smiled and opened the front door of the shop. "Come here."

"My name is," she hesitated, "Cherise Clare." Chloe gulped silently at the quick thinking, not knowing why those names came to her. Gaining her composure, she followed the woman out to the small front porch of the store that looked out on a grove of palm trees and other shops. Sitting down, she smiled pleasantly at the woman. "Don't I need to complete some paperwork or something?"

"In due time child. Look, over there is a wonderful little diner who's coffee is not Starbucks. Over there is Thomas' shop. He is a sculptor and is breaking in an apprentice, but we don't think he'll be very good. And over there is Magnil and her day spa. She'll do your hair when you want it done. Those other shops have moved in and out over the last season. Everyone is laid back and we have dinner at 6 under the palms there. Where are you staying?"

A big smile broke over Chloe's face as she felt the wind lightly whip through her hair as she looked at the overly tan woman. "I haven't honestly thought that far ahead." She stared at the woman sheepishly as the woman disappeared back into the shop for the moment. Reappearing, she was speaking in half English sentences to someone else and smiling at Chloe. Hanging up the phone, she clapped to herself. "Here she comes."

Chloe stood up and followed the woman down the stairs and met the woman from the day spa. Holding out her hand, she greeted the woman from the spa. "Cherise."

"Magnil. I have a place for you, but it's small. I dare call it a one bedroom, but it opens to gardens all around. And it has A/C, which is probably the most important." The three laughed as they noticed all of them were beading up with sweat even in the breeze.

"Thank you. I'll see you at dinner then?" Safina patted Chloe on the back and walked her back over to the shop just as a couple in badly pressed cargo pants entered.

"Now dear, here's your interview. " Safina went back behind the counter as Chloe approached the two, paying particular attention to the woman and what she was already wearing.

"Welcome, can I interest you in anything in particular."

"We're just looking," the man coldly answered as a way to snub the discussion.

"We have a daughter about 12 who we are buying for. Nothing to ornate, but delicate that she can wear to a party this summer." Chloe nodded in understanding and guided the woman gently over to some of the smaller pieces that hung neatly on the wall.

"Her eyes are?" Chloe nodded again at the response and picked up two glass drops on simple single chains. "These would be the nicest for a girl of that age. The color will compliment her complexion and eye color if she is the same complexion as you ma'am."

The woman smiled and handed both pieces back to Chloe, "I'll take them both. We're going to look around a little more." Chloe smiled and walked over to the counter. Safina pulled out two small necklace boxes and handed them to her.

"You're hired," she whispered as Chloe smiled back at her while carefully packing the two pieces up in the boxes. "By the way, we cook for everyone tomorrow night. You will need to learn some island fare quickly." Safina patted her on the back and disappeared into her small studio and shut the door. Chloe somewhat jumped when the radio in the back came on.

The first night of the joined dinner ended late. She had met so many different faces, all intrigued in her desire to give up everything for a new life. The apprentice, Steven, was a riot. He was like watching a six year old off his ADD medication. She barely could contain herself when he fell out of his chair while trying to show that he could in fact balance on just the hind legs. From what she had heard, he was a transplant. His parents had moved to the islands several years earlier and recently moved back to the states. He stayed behind; he called himself the eternal beach bum. Bum definitely, she thought to herself as his boss dogged him in detail during the after dinner drinks.

"Can I walk you home?" Steven panted as he caught up to Chloe as she locked up the shop and picked up her bags. He pulled one from her hand and walked back with her.

"No, I going with Magnil, but thank you." Chloe shook her head and smirked. Steven was cute. His sandy brown hair obviously suffered from the effects of the sun and salt water by being stringy and all over the place. His tan skin was nice to look at though, especially in his tank top and shorts. Chloe couldn't believe her luck. For years she had been through dead end relationships, Clark's Lana issues, Lex's relationship hangups, Jimmy's one and done problems, and numerous others and meteor freaks. She giggled to herself thinking it took a trip across water to find someone who biggest problem was that he didn't have problems. According to Steven, your problems stay on the mainland.

Steven shrugged and walked off in the opposite direction. Magnil wrapped her arm around Chloe and whispered, "No. You think your men had hangups back in Boston. Steven causes his own drama. He's moved from place to place on these islands to get away from women when things would go bad. Most were visitors and they just left. Just be cautious – it's not the big bad city, but you can really lose yourself here."

Chloe shook her head in silence as the two boarded the small passenger ferry for her new home. She felt already at home. Passport stamped, only two suitcases, but a whole new set of memories to create. She closed her eyes and felt the sunset's last few rays sink into her skin. The wind's slight chill gave her goosebumps as she leaned on the rail and watched one island's edge disappear for another's.

"This is your room," Magnil said as she put one of Chloe's bags down. She flipped a switch and a light blinked on. "There's a small bathroom through there with a bathtub and a small kitchen there." Chloe smiled at her new surroundings. "Now, tomorrow if you get up early, we can go into town and pick up some other things for you, like sunscreen." Magnil touched Chloe's shoulder that went from white to bright pink when she released her finger. "That's not good. I have some aloe in the house; I'll be right back."

After her bath, Chloe sat out on the little porch of the small detached apartment and looked through the trees. She could just barely see the crystal blue water through the branches. The apartment wasn't much, but it was now home.

**************

Lex sat back in his chair and stared at the pictures that he had intercepted from the airport security cameras. Chloe had obviously made all the perfect plans in getting on the plane that she did. She was first class, dressed impeccably in her light colored sundress and light sweater. Her name had appeared on the passenger list that he had obtained the morning she flew. Gliding his hand over the photo of her going through security, he smiled knowing she must finally be happier than in Smallville; he would be if he were there.

He sighed wondering if entering her life after she had obviously made her peace without him would be the right move. Thinking about how he had left things, he was quite sure that she would never want to see him again.

He had never meant to alienate her after her father's passing. The moments of their passing in casual had simply faded since after he had helped arrange her affairs. She stopped coming to him for guidance, especially after he and Clark had their last argument. Even with Lana hooked directly to his arm, Chloe still stood by Clark.

He had even made the attempt to fix things, but for once, at least for him, he lost courage to upset the delicate balance that Chloe had created. She had moved onto Charles, a junior at the school that was decently handsome and treated her well.

Lex felt bad about tailing the young man, but Chloe was still someone he had taken under his wing and protection, that he failed at miserably and still regretted. He remembered his confidant sending in messages about her last date with Charles, not but a couple of weeks ago. He had taken her to the Top of the Towers in Metropolis before Prom to treat her to the perfect dinner and some before Prom dance practice in a quiet environment.

Lex remember he was impressed that a high school junior was so smooth in his position. Charles, though, wasn't from any family. He was the son of the newest junior executive on the board at the Smallville plant. Lex admitted the jealous green giant overwhelmed when his crony sent a picture message of the two in each other's arms. Lex had nothing to be jealous of; he and Chloe had never been involved for more than friends and partners. It wasn't like she was a leggy brunette that would drop everything to meet him in the bedroom. That was his style.

That was about thirty minutes before his informant noted that prom would never be attended by the two. Chloe had broken the young man's heart. Charles had held her hand and nodded in sad agreement at words that Lex assumed were something like, "I just want to be friends." Chloe had always been honest to a fault. That was good though, he thought, at least one of them should be.

He stopped and pulled out his phone again. Punching the memory button, the picture of her being dipped on the dance floor showed off her laughing smile as the young man balanced her on his arm. But leggy brunettes didn't smile at him like that or have conversations of depth with him over coffee in the evening. Sliding his feet off the edge of his desk, Lex stared at her picture and suddenly felt a knot build up in his throat. Lowering his eyes, he wondered how Lana and Clark could simply let it go the way he had told them to.

Dialing the phone, he spoke to someone on the other end of the line. "Yes, I said St. Thomas. I'm looking for a woman that looks like the picture that I am sending you right now. Call me when you have her located."

Lex hung up the phone and stared at the pictures of her in the airport. He looked at the passenger list and figured it would be a couple of weeks at the most, but he would find her. This time, though, would be different. It wasn't about power over her or her needing him – she was his closest friend. He missed her terribly. And he wanted her to know it.

TBC...


	3. Chloe's Trying on Paradise

Chloe's Trying on Paradise – Chapter 3

"Hey, I need a Pina Colada and a Tropicana Twister," she turned around and halfway laid down on the bar. "You know Don; you would think people could be a little more adventurous when they come here. I mean, at least spice up their drink choices." The wide bodied tan older man behind the counter put the drinks on her tray as she smiled at him and took off across the small outdoor bar.

Chloe woke up that morning to another incredible sunrise staring at her through the window that she usually left open at night to take in the seabreeze. Water Island was only a few miles from St Thomas but world's away from reality. Walking out on the veranda of her efficiency, she stretched as she fixed her the local coffee favorite and read the latest book to make the library shelves.

She had developed an affinity for fruit, which surprised her along with her ability to, with the right lotions, get the brownest tan she could imagine. She left for work a little later. Her job at the jewelry store continued to be interesting as she got to meet people that were from all walks of life and yet none of them were meteor infected or worried about anything. She enjoyed the carefree nature of it all.

A few weeks earlier, though, she realized her living conditions weren't going to survive without a second job. That landed her at Don's Sandbar. She smiled pretty in her small shorts and raked in the tips, especially if she could rangle Don into letting her try the night shifts. She laughed to herself remembering that she had told Lana she would have nothing to do with waittressing. Lana would die laughing now.

"$8.50," she commented, sitting the drinks down on the table while shimming in her skirt to entice the patrons. The move paid off.

"Keep the change if you bring me a beer honey." Chloe grabbed the $20 and shoved it into her tanktop. She jumped slightly at the young man's hand popping her slightly on the back of her thigh as she walked off to the bar again. It was something she just got used to. Don was good about watching the action of the patrons and his wait staff, but a little touching only enhanced the tips. Besides, Josh was worth having his hand on her. Chloe wondered if he was interested in putting his hands anywhere else as she retrieved his beer from the bar.

Wednesday nights were difficult though. Women typically didn't tip women very well, unless they were lesbians. But those usually came in for ladies night together. Chloe sat down at the end of the bar and watched during her small break and waited for someone to wave for a waitress, but nothing. She watched the door as she snacked on peanuts from the bar, eyeing the new flavor of the week that walked up from the beach.

In bright yellow swim trucks and blue shirt, a man walked up to her at the bar. "Hey beautiful. What's the fresh tap tonight?"

"We got some new fruity beer from St Croix this morning." Chloe's smile stretched from ear to ear. She had only met Chris a few days ago but hadn't had a crushlike feeling since Clark. Clark, there's a lame flashback, she thought as his crystal emerald eyes looked back at her.

Rubbing his hand through his wet hair, he turned up his nose at her. "Nah, you know what I like." He leaned in and kissed her cheek. "And YOU make it," he responded as he looked at Don.

Don motioned for Chloe to come around the edge of the counter and pointed her to where the proper glasses were. Chloe put down the glass and watched as Chris pointed out bottles from behind her. Lining them up, Don handed her a large shot glass and instructed her how to pour. "Ok, you want a large shot of pineapple rum, banana rum, coconut rum, and orange rum."

Chloe carefully poured each shot into the glass over Chris's glass and then took a deep breath. "Wow, that's a lot of alcohol." Chloe caught a whiff of the drink as she put the bottle away. Don handed her three more bottles from the refrigerator. "At least you're mixing something else in it." She poured in orange, cranberry, and pineapple juice before mixing it up. Handing the glass to Chris, he slid it back across the bar.

"You forgot something." Chloe looked around and put a, orange wedge on it.

"Nope."

Don handed her the dark rum. "Barely to cover the top of the drink." Chloe inched the spout over the drink and darkened just the top of the drink before handing it back to Chris.

Chris lifted it to his lips as Chloe bit her lip in anticipation. Taking a sip, his eyes got really big and his face became all contorted as he shook his head and grimaced. Putting the drink down, he glared at Chloe, "Damn woman, you trying to kill me?"

"Oh God, I'm sorry, you should have let Don…."

"I'm just kidding Cher," Chris laughed and reached for her hand. "It's great." He took another sip as Chloe looked over his shoulder at one of her tables.

"I'll be back." Chris turned in the seat and watched as Chloe bent down just enough to give the male patrons a cleavage show while she took their order. He looked around and noticed that Don had moved his attention to another customer. Taking out the latest cell phone, Chris turned it on and popped a picture of Chloe as she covered her chest with her fingers and threw her mid-length golden locks back over her shoulder while laughing and entertaining the patrons. That was a good picture.

Chloe returned to the bar after serving the drinks to the men. "So what's on your schedule tonight?"

"Actually, I have an early evening sail, so I have to go out."

"You think you should sail after drinking that?" She wanted to laugh but her face actually turned on the concern when she thought about it.

"I'm just assisting this one. You know, serving drinking drinks and all. It's a sailor renting for a couple of hours." Chris pulled a ten out of his wallet and sat it on the counter. Sliding it over to Chloe, she smiled and was about to pocket the money.

Looking at the back of the ten, she read the words that were neatly written on the edge of the bill. 'Would you like to go out tonight?' Chloe's eyes flipped up and grinned at him.

Bumping him in the shoulder playfully, she shoved the ten in her tanktop and giggles, "I would love to."

"Good, then I'll be back around eight at your beach. Hey, and wear a jacket tonight. The winds have been kind of whippy out on the waves today." Chris downed a few more gulps of the drink and kissed Chloe's pink shoulder before leaving the bar. She sat on the bench at the bar and watched as he ran across the beach to hitch up the next afternoon catamaran ride.

"Cherise, be careful."

"Don, there's nothing to worry about."

Don threw down the towel he was working with and leaned over the bar toward her. "You're a smart, vivacious young woman. There are men that come and go on this beach, have seen more than you know. I want you to be careful. Besides, I can't lose the one waitress that can actually make correct change and doesn't smoke." He slapped the towel against the counter and walked away.

*************

Magnil knocked on the open door of Chloe's small apartment. "Hey, this is for you. Safina dropped it by the dinner tonight since you were getting ready. I told her that you were in your teal wrap and pants tonight." Magnil handed her a light jade necklace that Chloe had not seen in the shop. "She said you can have this one. Bonus for being so wonderful."

Chloe put the necklace on and then the earrings and stared at herself in the mirror. Something seemed out of place. "I wish I could do something different." She sighed sadly and stared at herself longingly, pulling her longer hair this way and that.

"Let me," Magnil interrupted. Taking Choe's comb, she checked her time and started portioning out Chloe's parts. Chloe sat in the chair Magnil pulled over in front of the wall mirror and watched as the woman's hands seemed to float through her hair. A short hour later, Chloe stared at the new look and lifted her shoulders in excitement.

Her golden flowing hair had been transformed into something more island worthy. The small threads of french braids were not exactly cornrows but held tightly to her head as her ends gave way and blew in the breeze that passed through her house. "This is so neat." She stood up and hugged Magnil. "Thank you." Chloe touched her head once more to feel the braids and grabbed her wrap. "I have to get going," she smiled and ran down the stairs toward the beach.

************

The night had gone by without a hitch. Chris picked her up on the beach and sailed them out between the two islands before anchoring in a small cove around the island from the lights. Popping the wine bottle open, he steadied himself on the edge of the boat before wobbling over to where he had set out dinner for the two.

"You have a good rest of your evening?"

"Yeah, it was ok. Some people shouldn't be given sailing licenses. I ended up sailing the boat back into harbor alone when the man couldn't handle the waves outside of the strait. Fun as hell being drunk." He handed a glass to Chloe.

"I told you not to drink all that crap before your appointment." Chloe took a sip of her wine and nibbles on some of the fruit laid out.

"Yeah, well, its easier to forget the morons if I'm drunk." The two laughed and Chloe stared at him suddenly. "Are you drunk now?" she questioned.

"No," Chris whispered as he scooted closer to her and kissed her neck. "Can't forget you."

The two continued through dinner, watching the sunset and making small conversation. Chloe marveled at his never-ending interest in her stories from high school and her friends. She surprised herself talking about her friends that she had left behind without even shedding a tear or getting choked up. Smiling through her story of prom, she sighed and leaned back into Chris's chest as he sat the empty wine bottle to the side and rubbed the tip of a strawberry down her nose before she bit into it.

"So, this guy at your dad's funeral? Friend?"

Chloe leaned further into Chris's shoulder and sighed. It was only fair; he had spent the last hour discussing how his girlfriend had dumped him on one of his own catamaran tours of the island. He had to sit and drive the sailboat the entire time while staring at her with a group of her friends. "I guess. It was complicated. He and I were never really a thing. I think we were friends, but he pretty much dropped out of the picture after that."

"Why?"

"Just felt guilty I guess. And I never pursued it. Seemed like he chose to be alone. He had his own set of issues to deal with and frankly I got a little too involved before." Chloe ran her hand down Chris's arm before he kissed her on the cheek.

The night progressed and the two sailed back to the small beach near her new home. The sun had already gone down and the only light was from the lights now adorning the houses overlooking the shore. Chris stepped out first and grabbed Chloe as she jumped from the head of the catamaran. "Thanks for the nice evening. I hate to cut it short, but I have to clean up the boat for tomorrow's morning outing."

Chloe picked up her things from the sand and smiled, "I really enjoyed it. The first time I had ever been sailing." She stopped and waited to see his next move. Seeing he was either shy or not interested, she continued nervously, "Now, I don't want to see you in Don's tomorrow getting sloshed before work again."

"Yes mother," he replied as he rolled his eyes. "Anyway, goodnight." Chris rubbed his hand gently down her arm as he barely pressed his lips to her and kissed her.

He let go of her hand, and she backed up. She watched as Chris pushed the light craft back into the shallows of the water before throwing himself over the hull of one side and into the mesh stretched across the center of the sailboat. Waving, he switched over the sail and disappeared with the wind. She stood on the beach in the dark until she couldn't see the boat anymore.

"Well?"

Chloe jumped from her skin as Magnil walked up behind her. "Damn, don't do that." A grin came across her face as she felt flushed all of a sudden. "He's nice."

Magnil walked up the beach toward the house with Chloe and shook her head, "Nice; that smile on your face says more than nice. You like him." Chloe didn't respond, but just pasted a grin on her face as her cheeks felt redder and redder on the way home.

Once at the house, she dropped her things and spun around in her living room. Flopping back into her couch, she took a deep breath and desperately tried to hold her happiness. The best date she had since she couldn't remember. There was no Clark leaving, no meteor freak issues, no expected putting out at the end of the evening. She couldn't stop smiling.

**************

Lex stared at the picture of the blond woman in the picture in a sundress at the local art show. She sat next to an older Island woman and looked as if she was stringing beads. He also had photos that showed her in some seriously short shorts serving drinks. She looked really happy. He hoped interfering wouldn't disrupt her too much.

Clark had visited earlier in the week, hoping that Lex was for once sticking his nose into business he shouldn't. Lex knew better than to tell him anything about what he had found. Clark would be down there trying to convince her to come back to Smallville despite him and Lana already being very involved. It wouldn't be fair for her; she would come back to the same mess and still not have anything to show for it. Where she was she was happy and content. Shaking his head, he remembered Clark's conversation as he looked at the email she had sent him.

Hey! I finally got to a little Internet café to tell you what a wonderful

time I'm having where I am. I'm still not telling you where. I hope

everything is going well with your family and Lana. It's so weird not

sitting in front of a computer to do anything in life. I have gotten so

much reading done it's ridiculous. Anyway, say hi to everyone; that

means actually talking to Lex. I've included a picture for you. Ciao!

Lex looked at the email and grinned as she routed it through an IP address in Seattle just in case Clark or Lana could actually figure out how to track down the café. She was still smart as a tack and her tan just increased her desirability.

"Lex, can you help us?"

"Chloe obviously doesn't want to be found. She's happy. You can tell. Now, I heard that you and Lana got engaged or something?" He didn't want to go there, but listening to Clark prattle on about how he asked Lana for her hand would at least change the subject. After about an hour of shaking his head and downing immense amounts of liquor, Clark finally left and Lex read over the email again.

Now, a week later, he ran his hand over the same email and halfway smiled. She at least had remembered his name, and actually reached out to him however awkward. There was definitely a possibility for the two of them. He closed the folder on his desk and looked at his watch. Seeing the lateness of the evening, he started to bed when his cellphone rang.

"Hey! This is Chris. It's on it's way man. You were right; she falls hard. Although, she talked a lot about you and some other guy. How long do I have to keep this up – my boyfriend's kind of pissed."

"He won't be when you get the money in your account. A little longer. " Lex closed the phone and closed his eyes. He couldn't take a chance. Rebound or not, he would be who she would run to.

TBC...


	4. Getting to Know a Stranger

Getting to Know a Stranger – Chapter 4

Chloe plugged her old laptop in the slot at the WIFI hotspot in town on the one day she had scheduled not to work either job. Slinking back into the seat in her shorts and tank top, she used the laptop pillow and put her feet up on the footrest. The café was open-air and beautiful. Chloe couldn't imagine many places better than overlooking the harbor of crystal blue water while sipping a lightly alcoholic beverage and emailing friends. Unfortunately, her real friends seemed to be more preoccupied with themselves.

Opening up her email account, she noticed an address that made her skin tingle. A small smile broke across her face as she opened the email and started to read.

Chloe,

As you can see from this email, Clark was civil enough to deliver

your hello personally. It was a bit odd seeing him not try to

accuse me of something. He is very interested in knowing where

you are at. He seems to think that I would be wiling to go

look for you. As for me, I am very pleased to hear that

you have found yourself a nice place to call your own.

Smallville was simply not large enough for you. Just be

safe. Take care.

Lex

Chloe sat and stared at the screen and wondered what and how she should respond. She knew that Clark was not the one that could hack her transmissions, but wasn't so sure about Lex. Then again, having Clark around to talk endlessly about Lana seemed more burdensome than Lex complaining about having sunburn on his head. She giggled to herself about the thought as she hit the reply button.

Lex,

Good to hear from you. Good to hear from someone. For

all the worry Clark seems to show to you, he seems to really

worry about me. I haven't heard from him. I really appreciate

the email although I'm pretty sure by the time you get this,

you'll know exactly the café I have emailed it from. So, under

the same confidence as we had before, I'll tell you it's gorgeous

here. You should really relax sometimes. I'm sitting writing an

email on the BEACH! Imagine taking down corporations from

your own lounge chair. Of course, the connection sucks so no

attachments. Speaking of, my little 5 minute timer is ticking

away. Keep in touch and thanks for your clandestineness.

Chloe

The next morning Lex opened his email to the brand new email from Chloe. It wasn't much, but she knew him. He watched her constantly even without her knowledge. She hadn't noted in her email that she noticed anything out of the ordinary with anyone on the island, in particular Chris. He couldn't ask either even though he wanted to. Clicking the reply button, he paused and tried to think of what to say. I miss you, I need you, you deserve the stars, fall in love with me. Dismissing all the cheesy lines he could think of, started typing.

Chloe,

As much as where you are sounds relaxing, I have this

inkling that holding business meetings in the sand

wouldn't be very productive, especially if the contracts

float away. Ok, my attempt at humor is wasted. It's good to

talk to you again.

Lex sat and stared at the blinking cursor and took a deep breath. Reaching for the small glass of scotch, he barely had the liquid touch his lips and put the glass back down. His taste suddenly changed looking at snapshots of her from a security camera at the café. Capturing her in her baseball cap that kept up her ruse of being from Boston. She was more slender than he remembered, her legs perfectly laid as she typed in her sunglasses with the small hint of a smile on her face. He called the kitchen and ordered a daiquiri to the cook's dismay.

You sound like you're having a wonderful time there. Tell

me more about your new life. It has to be more relaxing

than chasing freaks around cornfields. As for me, nothing really

has changed in the last day or so. Then again, I have no idea

how much of the outside world you hear about. My father is

ill again; his chances to survive liver failure is pretty grim. The

doctor's are generous with the three months they give him. I

would give him less if I had the chance. Business is good. I

had a group in Moscow call and practically beg for me to

take their dead Siberian oil wells. Small venture, nothing

newsworthy. After seeing the specs, they got out generously. I

have a call coming in. Talk to you soon.

Lex

A week went by before Chloe could get to the café again. Her life had been one moment after another. Her week seemed to have flown by between her two jobs and her new man. She couldn't believe things were progressing so well. Chris had taken her out twice in the last week, but he was still reserved. She didn't quite understand the lack of draw. He wasn't like Clark; he was affectionate and caring and only focused on her during their times together, but she wondered why there had been no advancements.

She sat down and opened her computer and stared at the screen patiently. Thinking about the time it took for the Internet to connect at the little café, she compared herself to Kathleen Kelly in You've Got Mail. She waited for the icon to show up on her computer and clicked to see the fairly long email from her old friend. She was glad to see his name at the top of an otherwise empty email box and replied.

Lex,

Amazing how someone that frightens grown men can

make me smile by just seeing his address on the top of

my screen. Sorry, but I can only write once a week b/c

of the connection here. Actually, the connection is not

anywhere near my living quarters so it adds a little more

challenge to carry the computer everywhere. But then

again, they want people to come here to visit and forget

their everyday life. Anyway, I'm glad to hear things are

not completely stressing you out. I would say I'm sorry

to hear about your father, but I would be lying. It's too bad

that he couldn't have even tried to make better of himself

in his last few months. Some people never change. Just

promise me, you won't follow his path. That gleam in your

eye at the next big business deal sometimes scared me. You

have promise, but you're not there yet. I haven't heard from

Lana or Clark still. What is up? Or do I not want to know. Just

Forget I asked.

Oh, I forgot to tell you. I met this guy and I need a guy's opinion.

I know asking you for romantic tips is like asking a person

that fights pit bulls for dog care tip, but still. His name is not

important, but he is very nice and we've gotten close. It's not

like Clark – he doesn't completely ignore my feelings, he's

just, I can't put my finger on it. Like he has something on the

side. Should I confront him? From the guy's angle, what's going

on? You probably feel uncomfortable talking about this – esp.

having to listen it for so many years with the lana clark sit.

Don't worry about it. WB soon.

Hugs, Chlo

Lex read the email in the silence of his private bedroom and pursed his lips together in thought. On the one hand, she called herself to a T. She sounded like the old days when Clark and Lana both filled his head with he said she said scenarios and expected him to play the love guru. This time, the scenario was of his own making. He wondered if maybe it was time to pull the plug. Thinking carefully, he flipped though his calendar on his PDA looking at the upcoming months. Seeing an almost packed schedule, he penciled in a small amount of time to hopefully visit her. The wait would be torturous. Laying down in the bed, he stared at the screensaver that faded as pictures from several of St Thomas's cameras eluded to Chloe's happiness.

That morning he grabbed the phone and stared at the clock. 4AM. Two hours of sleep was nearly enough to survive a board meeting on, so the person on the other line better be the fuck important. "What?"

"Sir, the hospital called. Your father passed away a couple of hours ago. They wanted to know if the arrangements are the same."

Lex sat up in bed and rubbed his eyes, wondering if he was still in a dream. Sliding out of bed, he stubbed his foot against the bedpost and realized he was very much awake. "Yeah, I'll be right there." He threw the phone on the bed and stared at the computer. Tuesday was her email day. He always meant to beat her to it where she got an email. Today would be different.

*****

A week and then two went by without another email from him. Chloe sat and watched the cursor and refreshed the page several times before giving up and closing the computer. They had talked for a month as if they were still the closest friends, but she had thrown out the boyfriend question. That ended the conversation. She walked back to the café and picked up another drink and sat on the sand by herself. Maybe she had read too much into the emails from Lex. Maybe he was making conversation, or just trying to pry since he couldn't help it. She turned her computer on and got barely one tick of the Internet.

Gliding her fingers over the small mousepad, she curled up her lip in indecision. She hadn't investigated anything in almost four months. She felt bad by looking into Lex's agenda, but she was sure he was looking into hers. Opening the main news blotter, the reason for his absence was all over the main page. Lionel Luthor died. Chloe sat and intently read about the last days of suffering in a high security prison hospice center without a trace of his son nearby. She almost felt sorry for the man. Almost. It was strange to have something that in common with Lex again. They both had no parents to speak of.

Stopping to read another article about the small funeral, she spotted everyone from Smallville that at least paid their respects to the bastard even if he didn't deserve it. She wouldn't have gone. She understood Lex's reasoning for not communicating with her now. Still, it was frightening to see his same pattern after her own father's death emerge. This time, it would be different.

"Luthor." Lex picked up the phone while furiously signing company contracts over to his name.

"Lex, it's Chloe."

TBC...


	5. Finding Closure

Finding Closure – Chapter 5

"Chloe," Lex dropped his pen and leaned back in his chair. "It's nice to hear from you." He walked over to the bar and started to pour a drink.

Hearing the clink of glass, Chloe halfway laughed to herself, "You haven't changed. Put the drink down Lex and talk to me." She paused and heard him put the bottle top back on. "I would say that I'm sorr…"

"You and I both know that we are the last people that feel sorry about his death." Chloe listened to a death filled silence for at least thirty seconds. She heard the crunching sound of his leather couch in the background. "How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine."

"Don't lie. You've tried that once too many times around me." Chloe whispered.

Lex smirked and rolled his eyes, "I was hoping that over the phone you wouldn't be quite the reporter, but I see some things can never be lost even when one leaves their life behind. Things are best that can be expected. Companies are all worried about their assets now that dad is gone. Trying to reason with them and explaining he was never in control from jail has been a hard sale."

"Then they obviously are not those that you should be in business with in the first place. "

"Maybe, but they are viable companies that we need to work with."

"I'm sure there are others. Anyway, since you probably have all your phone calls monitored and tracked, you now have my number and if you ever want to talk, just let me know. You sound busy, so I'll let you go, but remember you have to take time for yourself. Just keep this between us please."

Lex closed his eyes and sighed, hoping where she wouldn't hear him. Chloe listened closer and heard it and smiled partially. She would have never imagined that she would have missed Lex Luthor of all people. "Will do." Another long pause caught the two of them. Lex had words floating around his conscious waiting to roll off his lips but couldn't do it. "Thanks for calling Chloe. It means a lot."

Chloe could hear a hint of hesitation in his voice as his last words came across the line. "Goodnight Lex." He heard the phone click off, and he dropped it to the ground. Closing his eyes, he rubbed his head and leaned over, crying.

He woke the next morning with an ache in his neck that would require an immediate massage treatment. Sliding his feet off the couch, he picked up the phone from the floor and looked at the table. He hadn't had a drink that night. She had done that to him. He secretly wondered if Chloe Sullivan was his personal answer to AA. Getting up and moving to his room, he changed clothes and checked his schedule. His secretary had moved all his appointments for the week for his sanity. She really shouldn't have. He sat on the edge of the bed and groaned at having nothing to do but grieve.

Going back to the office, he looked at the computer screen and opened his email. More junk mail and company proposals that could wait. He surfed the list and found one more from Chloe sent early this morning.

Lex,

I had to drop you another line before going to work. I know

people are going to judge you now by your father's actions.

Be mindful that only those closest to you know you best. I

don't know about Lana or Clark or even the Kents at this

point, but I think you can rise above this. Don't be your

father. Call me if you need someone to talk to.

Chlo

Lex stared at the email and thought about his underhanded scheme that he had cooked up. Chris was there to watch her. Things had to change, and he would eventually save her. The amount of work he was buried with didn't give him in the opportunity to make the trip he wanted before. Flipping through his electronic schedule again, he deleted the trip to the islands for two weeks from then.

Picking up the phone, he dialed a number on the desk in front of him and sighed as he waited for the other end to pick up. "Hello?"

"Charles, this is Lex Luthor. How are you this morning."

"Sleepy, we're in Australia training. What is going on Mr. Luthor? We aren't available for charter until October. The upcoming season is hot and we're down one man since Frank's wife had a baby."

Lex's lip curled into a smile at his luck; he was sure that his offer at first would have had to be more money and a squabble. "I have a favor. I know a young man in St. Thomas that is a sailing instructor that could serve as a good backup."

Lex waited for a few moments for the man on the other line to comprehend what was being offered. "This is for the World Cup Mr. Luthor. I can't have some kid screwing our chances to hell. The water in the Gulf of Mexico isn't exactly the same as the Brisbane coast."

"It would benefit you greatly in the brand new boat department."

Lex could practically see the old sailor rolling his eyes at such an offer. "Alright, send his information to me and I will start the transfer. He needs to report by day after tomorrow."

"Very well." Lex hung up the phone and pulled up the phone number of one Christian. Dialing the number, he waited patiently.

"St. Thomas Sailing Excursions, this is Chris." Lex was feeling doubly lucky with not having to deal with outsiders today.

"Chris, this is Lex Luthor. I have an offer for you. I need you to pack your bags; you are leaving tomorrow for Australia. You have a spot on the US World Team. You will have two plane tickets sent to your home by personal delivery at exactly 6 tonight. Do not skip this flight. There will be a doubled amount of money placed in your account for your silence and assurance that you will break up your relationship with Cherise."

"Yes sir," he answered bluntly. Lex knew there would be no argument from him over the ending of a the relationship. He had the perfect ending. He was getting an all star job, money, and a place to start over. Lex was getting the girl; she just didn't know it yet.

Hanging up the phone, he dialed one more number. "Yes, could you send me the website of the place on Water Island I had asked about a few days ago?" Lex hung up the phone and refreshed his email, waiting for the link from the realtor to show up on his screen.

Opening the email, he clicked the link, /07-1804vir .

He dialed the number again, "I'll connect you to my assistant who will get the papers drawn up. The keys need to be on my desk in four days."

Sitting back in his chair, Lex looked at the clock on the computer screen. He had just designed the perfect new plan in a mere hour. Turning to the stack of papers on his desk, he realized that the real world beckoned him now.

********

"My Cheri, mon amour," Chris came up behind Chloe had caused her to mix all the necklaces hanging from her arm.

"Don't do that, I have warned you. Anyway, shouldn't you be like at work or something?" She continued to string the necklaces on the different displays as Chris backed up and watched her. Lex had good taste for a man who liked women. She had been fun.

"Come on, tell the old woman you need a break. I got some news." Chloe looked behind her as Safina waved her out the door. "Let's go get something to eat." The two walked to the next set of store and sat in the outdoor café.

"So, what is up?" Chloe sat back and held Chris's hand while she noticed his constant fidget. "This can't be good," she corrected as he looked around in directions other than hers.

"It's good, but for me. I got a call this afternoon from a team captain in Australia. I was picked up for the World's team. I'm just a backup, but it'll get me professional exposure. It's just that I have to on a plane tomorrow."

Chloe let go of his hand and looked at him confused. "I don't get it. We're breaking up aren't we?" She waited for an answer but his drop in his head was all she needed. She fiddled in her purse for some cash and threw it down. Walking down the stairs, she felt his hand on her arm. "Let go of me."

"Look, I found out this afternoon. They are a missing a man – it's the way it is. You were the first one I told; you've known exactly 30 minutes less than I have." Chloe pulled from his grip and kept walking back to the store.

"That doesn't change the fact you dropped this in my lap."

"What are you so upset about? I can't turn this down." Chris took her in his arms and pulled her into him. He could feel the warmth of her tears on his sunburned shoulder. Running his hands through his hair, he tried to calm her in front of a small crowd he tried to shoo away. "You are an amazing woman, and someone will be very lucky to find and fall in love with you."

Chloe pulled from his shoulder and felt Chris wipe her tears from her face. "It wasn't supposed to be this way. I was supposed to be happy here."

"You will be. The islands are always strange bedfellows. You have all this to look forward to. I'm losing you and going to sea. I don't think there is a comparison."

"Then why go?"

"Because you don't turn down opportunity when it stares you in the face." Chloe tried to break a smile knowing he was telling the truth. "I'll write you."

"Don't lie." Chris nodded in agreement. She knew him well enough to know his tendencies to even make a date on time, much less stay in touch across the world from her. She hugged him once more and kissed him lightly on the lips. Sitting down on the stairs, she watched him walk back over toward the beach to quit his job.

"Some days are sunny and some days are hurricanes," Safina commented as she sat next to her. Chloe leaned on the woman's shoulder as Safina ran her hand over Chloe's still tear stained face. It was for the best, Chloe tried to reason; he was a dead end it seemed anyway. As her tears tapered off, she missed him. She wanted to talk to him, feel his arms around her comforting her. Lex.

TBC


	6. An Island Summer

An Island Summer – Chapter 6

Chloe woke up the morning after Chris had let her go and stood on her lanai when the phone rang. She looked at the caller ID and felt a large smile creep across her face. "Good morning," she welcomed.

"Good morning to you too beautiful. I had a few minutes before a meeting and thought I would take your advice and call you." Lex threw his feet up on the ultra expensive glass desk and slunk back into the leather chair. "Hang on," he put the phone down. "Can you open those curtains on the window over there?"

The servant looked at his employer in strange dismay and stopped momentarily before doing as he asked. Squinting slightly as more sun made it's way into the main office at the mansion, Lex took a deep breath. "Lex?"

"Sorry, I need some more light."

"You light?? Since when did you come over to the good side?"

"Sunlight, and that's not funny. So, how are you?" Lex was curious about the end result with Chris and couldn't give away how much that he knew. He had watched Chris and his partner get on a plane in St. Thomas that morning via cell phone. He noticed a long pause and could hear her start to sigh. It wasn't a true love he thought to himself; the boy was supposed to simply have her fall in love and then leave her. A crush, an infatuation. Rolling his eyes, he squeezed his temples realizing he had made a mistake.

"I'm fine," she casually threw out. She honestly felt sick; she had gone to Don's with Safina and talked about her feelings and her problems with love. "I just went out and…"

"Hangover bad?"

Chloe tried to laugh on the other end but ended up grabbing her head and lurching forward. "Lex Luthor, are you spying on me? What am I saying; you are. Yeah, I got a little drunk last night. But the man dumped me – he just up and left for a job. What is my problem?" Chloe didn't want a lecture from of all people a womanizer, but her hangover continued to invite unwanted opinions just as the night before.

Lex laughed to himself about her ironic statement, "Chloe, he left you for a job? Was it a good job?" Yes, it was the best offer possible, he thought. "Think seriously Chloe; if someone offered you a position at the Daily Planet or New York Times, wouldn't you drop everything and move?"

Chloe sat in silence and thought about it. She looked out over the garden that her little porch covered and tried to picture leaving the place. "Honestly, I don't know anymore."

A smile crept across Lex's face picturing her on the beach and her sunburned shoulders. "They'll be plenty of cabana boys, sailing instructors Chloe. You just have to trust that if they leave you, it's their mistake regardless of the reasons."

Chloe's upset scowl softened at the last sentence. "You know for you hopping from marriage to marriage and literally suite to suite, you really have some interesting insights. Too bad you never use your own advice." Lex laughed at loud as Chloe held the phone away from her pounding headache.

"Hangover," she reminded him.

"Sorry, take some aspirin and get some rest. You work today?"

"Tonight at the bar." Lex could tell from her short answers that her body and mind were moth fading back to a much needed sleep. He would be happy to carry her to the bed and cover her up if he could.

"I'm going to let you go. The helicopter will be here in a few and you need some rest. Go back to bed and get a good sleep."

"Yes doctor." Chloe grabbed her head and lied back down on the bed in her small room. "Thanks Lex." She couldn't exactly make out the last words before she closed the phone. On the other end, Lex stared at his phone and tried to remember the last time someone went to sleep while they were on the phone with him.

*******

Chloe looked at her watch as she flew out of the house and to the ferry. She was going to be soooo late. She heard horn from the ferry blow its final warning call before she leapt on the end of it. Looking back in the direction of her little place, she wondered when Jules' flight was.

She had taken a page out of Lex's handbook for relationships and tried the love and leave method. She now had an increased understanding for the have fun and then let it go attitude. Jules was a young blonde guy from England. He came in with his family reunion but apparently had a wild streak in him that caused him to duck as many events as possible.

She had met him on the beach as he double fisted beers and walked away from the hotel where he said his 80 year old grandmother was going to kill herself with diabetic shock from the size of the cake. He was funny. He reminded her of Clark, living on a sheep ranch in the country. Remembering the first time she had heard that, she pictured Clark trying to herd sheep. It was her first thought of either Lana or Clark in a couple of months.

Now, Jules was on his way back to England in the afternoon. She never actually thought she would have ever learned anything from Lex Luthor, but he was a decent teacher. Her lack of attachment had become an easy endeavor, except for Chris.

For almost two months, she and Lex talked either by email or phone everyday until he left for India. That had been a week ago. She sat on the stool behind the jewelry counter and stared out the front of the store and watched a bald man walk by. The man was dressed in a pair of light blue shorts and a floral shirt that didn't nearly match. She giggled thinking what in the world Lex Luthor would do on a beach.

**************

"Hey, are you ready?" Safina hollered into the back of the jewelry store at Chloe. The last few weeks Chloe had tried her hand at the craft and learned that it calmed her even more than she was already.

"Yeah, but I can't get this tied," Chloe walked out of the back and handed the two ends to Safina.

"This is really nice, but why all the dark colors honey?" Chloe's piece had glass beads in shade of violet and blue.

"I don't know; I like these color together." Safina handed the necklace back to Chloe and she put it over her head, tucking the end of it into the top of her tubetop dress. "Anyway, there are only so many shades of pink, beige, and light blue that can be mixed together. It's variety."

The two joined the rest of the merchants on the beach for a Thank You party in between cruise ship landings. Safina explained that the cruise ships dumped a lot of people in a short amount of time into St. Thomas and let people go send their money. That was their livelihood. Winter birds never bought trinkets like those that only stayed for a few hours or at most a day before moving on. But in between the rush of visitors, they gathered for their own sanity and to discuss business.

Chloe threw a chair down on the other side of two women. The surf was just coming in and would barely run along her toes buried in the white sand. Safina came up and sat down beside her. "Hey, Safina how's the shop?"

"Fine now that my wonderful employee has rearranged all my books for me. I never knew how out of whack my money was." Safina leaned over and hugged Chloe.

"Speaking of money," another woman chimed in, "I heard the place up in the estates on the other side of your island got purchased. Umm, Belia quit her job at the hotel to become the house mom for it. Says people have been in and out rewiring some of the rooms. There's speculation that the government is purchasing it for some covert operation." The woman nodded convincingly.

"Oh hush," Safina dropped, nodding her head. "I heard that was nothing – someone just bought it and is just preparing to move in." Another woman countered saying the latest celebrity couple had purchased it and was getting it wired to have an at home birth. Chloe watched the women continue to bicker about the new owners of the Water Island home until she couldn't take it.

"So, what is so big about this house that it warrants that kind of attention?"

"Because even normal snow birds don't usually pay cash for four million dollar homes." Chloe stopped and tried to swallow the amount of money that they were talking about. She got up from her chair and started down the beach.

"Honey?" Chloe smiled and motioned for the women to keep talking. She had to get air. She walked along the beach and watched as the sun went down. The sky radiated with various colors of blues and pinks just like the jewelry in the store.

Chloe sat down on the sand up from the new tide line and watched the waves run into each other as if they were fighting for space. The water was so blue she could see the last little reflections of the sun off the small fish swimming in the surf. It was truly beautiful every night. She felt lucky that she could end each day in the same way. Everyone should have the same opportunity. Still, she looked up the beach and back down, noticing that people had started packing up their beach chairs and putting out the fire at the party. They all had to be up for the next ship early tomorrow.

She pulled her phone out her pocket and flipped it open. No calls. It had been a week without not even a text message. She hadn't read anything in the news about his whereabouts or any deals in India. She silently resigned herself to him simply being out of touch and unavailable. She still missed him. Even with the view in front of her, there was something missing. She flipped the phone open again and tried to remember who called who last.

"Screw it," she said to herself as she dialed. "Hey, it's me. I know you're probably busy, but I just wanted to say hi and," she paused, "that's it." She hung up the phone and beat it against her head. Stupid, she thought. He probably thinks I'm an idiot; I sound like a damn schoolgirl crush. She shoved her phone back in her pocket and ran back down the beach for the ferry back to the island.

*********

It was dark in the islands without electricity powering everything she thought to herself as she slapped the flashlight. The talk about that damn mansion had gotten the best of Chloe's investigative bug. It was the largest piece of intrigue that had hit the island since she had been here. "Shit," she cussed catching her knee on a rock as she climbed up to the top of the property line. There was no fence, at least not a dangerous or armored one. She swung one leg over the side of the fence and pulled herself up.

She stared at the front entrance with the two pillars for decoration. It wasn't very overstated. It was dark, but she was pretty sure that the size and the view were the reasons for the price, and definitely not the security. She stayed off the main paths and followed the driveway in the trees up to the main house entrance. Trying the door, it was obviously locked as she flashed the light inside the glass. The place was immaculate, with the finest furniture that she had ever seen in a beach house.

Walking around to the other side of the house, she noticed the slatted doors that she guessed went from the lanai she was into the kitchen. Sticking a small file from her purse in between the doors, she felt the lock drop and popped open the door. "Great security; could be government."

She slid her hand across the counter as she eyed the contents of the cabinets. Most were staple food that looked like it had been bought recently. She continued into the living room and saw the original ad for the place and the asking price. Throwing the sheet back on the table, she continued down the hall, looking for some clue as to what or who was going to be the new occupants. "Probably just a really rich stuck up nobody."

She pushed open a door and found a room with several shelves of book and eyed the titles. Seascapes, Drawing the Ocean, Creating Your Own Inner Peace, Island Development. "Interesting mix," she commented as she flipped through the last one on real estate development. "Obviously the wife and husband have different reasons to be here." She didn't know who was going to be there, but no one could possibly want to get their Zen on while trying to sell real estate in hurricane alley.

She closed the books and walked back out into the hallway and saw another flash. Tiptoeing away from the flash, she cracked the door to what looked like a pool just as an alarm screamed out, "Zone 3."

Seeing flashlights behind her, she suddenly had flashbacks of running from plants and other secure buildings and cursed herself repeatedly to stop poking her nose in other people's affairs. She jumped over the side of the railing of the pool desk and landed on her butt and continued rolling. She saw the lights continue to follow her as she sprinted through the thick tropical brush toward what she could see was the property line. The light in front of her stopped her. "Come on," the older man with a Jamaican accent said as he grabbed her by her jacket.

She sat down on one of the couches in the living room that she had just broken into. "I just wanted to see the inside." The man motioned for her to stop talking and she rolled her eyes. They had taken her purse, her bag, and her flashlight. Dumping her off the cliff in front of the house would be a definite good end to the evening.

"Sir, we have an intruder." The Jamaican man turned around and pointed the camera end of it at her. He waited while watching Chloe still eyeing the rest of the house as much as she could now with the lights on. Still no hints of who or what was moving in. She glanced back over to the man who was obviously waiting for an answer of what part of the island they should bury the body.

In Metropolis, Lex stared at the screen on his computer and couldn't help but laugh at her. Trying seriously to bite his tongue and give serious instructions to his security, he waited until he composed himself. The man on the other end of the line could wait; he was paid well.

"Give her back her keys, purse, wallet, but keep her phone and computer as a precaution." He thought about his requirements. It would kill both of them not to be able to talk to each other, especially after so many days of not speaking. "Drop her at the end of the Estates Property and make her walk home." Poor Chloe, just counldn't go a summer vacation without having to work.

"Very well." The man hung up the phone and turned toward Chloe. "Ok, here." He handed her the same items as he was told and pulled her up by the collar of her jacket.

"What about?"

"Owner says no."

"Who is the owner?" The man looked down at her like she was a little girl and lifted an eyebrow.

"Move." He walked her back to the front of the entire estates development and pushed her on the other side of the fence. "Now, go." Chloe watched the man turn and start back down the road into the estates. He looked back and saw her still standing there, pondering another move. Drawing his gun, he knew his instructions were very strict to only point at the nearest tree to her if it came to it. She was not to be harmed. "Go!" Chloe heard the gun cock in the dark and started running down the street the other way.

************

"So, did you find out anything on your little trip up the island last night?" Magnil asked Chloe at breakfast.

Chloe's head popped up at the statement, "I didn't know…"

"I couldn't sleep and saw you coming up the drive. Are you ok?" Magnil saw the disappointment in Chloe's face. She had disappointed herself. She was there to get past all the things that always got her in trouble, Clark, investigations, and yet in her recent boredom, she had fallen back into old patterns. Magnil rubbed her hand along Chloe's arm, "Why don't you call him again."

Chloe glanced over at Magnil in surprise. She hadn't spoken about Lex to her from what she could remember. "I called him last. I don't want to seem…"

"Needy? Infatuated? In love?"

Chloe shot Magnil a look and tried to contain herself. "I'm not in love with the man; he's my friend."

"Of course," she got up and walked out of the kitchen and left Chloe with a cell phone sitting on the table next to her.

**********

Another month passed and without her phone or computer, she couldn't talk to Lex or even follow what he was doing. Money was tight, and she didn't want to take advantage of others. She walked the beach almost every night and stared at the moon wondering if the color was the same from Smallville. For the first time she was depressed.

She sat in the bar waiting for the lunch crowd to start and wiped down the same place on the bar. "You know darlin, of you keep rubbing that place, we'll have a cupholder for the next patron in that seat." Chloe lifted the rag and noticed she had rubbed the finish off the old plackboard bar.

"Sorry," she smiled. Don had even tried to cheer her up, asking her to a birthday party for his nephew that Chloe had previously mentioned was cute, but she wasn't interested. She walked over to another table and shifted some of the condiment bottles around before sitting down again, feeling too tired to work.

"Hey!" Chloe looked up and saw Safina appear at the front door of the bar. She had finally taken Chloe's advice and closed on Mondays when cruise ships weren't at port. Safina worried when she would lose her best and only employee she ever had, but she was confident it was pretty soon. No one that wasn't truly dedicated to this life could stay forever. She sat down at one of the tables facing the street and stared at the people getting out of cars in the parking lot. "Don, what do you make of this guy? Think he got on the wrong plane?"

Don walked over and sat at the table with Safina and glared at the man in the light blue sweater, black slacks, and sunglasses. "Does he know that it's summer?" Don rubbed his bald scalp and cringed, "Dude, buy a hat. You have to some see this guy Cherise." She ignored Don and sat at the end of the bar with her head down, watching the waves knock little kids down.

The man continued into the bar as Don and Safina both walked back toward the bar. He walked up to the end of the bar as Don laid a glass out and poured. "Welcome to the islands," Don tried to say with a straight face as he put the glass of light rum in front of the man.

Pulling his sunglasses off, the man looked at the other end of the bar before putting back the small glass of alcohol. "I'm looking for a Chloe Sullivan." Hearing her name, she turned.

TBC


	7. Surprise

Surprise – Chapter 7

The two looked at the young bald man and laughed. "Chloe, there's no one here by that..."

Chloe sat up and stared at Lex in awe. He was actually standing there in front of her. She had dared him to come visit, to give up work and he was actually there. She was stunned beyond words.

She glanced over in Don's direction and apologized. "I"m Chloe," she stated shyly hoping that the two didn't bad mouth her to the rest of her island friends. Lex knew her pseudonym and still blew her cover.

Dom and Safina both sat and stared at each other before glancing back in Chloe and Lex's direction. They could see the look of concern on her face as Lex casually slid his hands into his pants, not concerned with her cover. "Chloe," Safina lightly giggled at her, "most of this island is made up of people trying to get away whether it be for a weekend or forever. Honey, you have done nothing wrong except for not introducing us to your friend."

Chloe jumped off her chair almost flying into Lex's arms now that her worry of what her friends would think was past her. Composing herself, she took Lex's hand and pulled him over to Don and Safina's table. "This is Lex Luthor."

Don smiled, stood, and offered Lex his hand without hesitation. "Well our little Chloe knows a billionaire." Leaning over closer to Lex, he whispered man to man, "any chance you could buy this bar out from under me - perhaps wait for a hurricane and collect the insurance?"

Lex looked at Chloe and wondered if Don could actually be serious. Lex wrapped his arm around her as he felt her hand start wrapping around his arm. She looked up at him and watched curiously. "That would definitely turn my accountant's eye if I bought a sand bar." He extended his hand as they shook hands. "Can I steal her away? I know happy hour is probably going to pick up, but for your trouble."

Lex let Chloe go and tugged at his wallet. Pulling out several hundred dollar bills, he laid the money in front of Don and waited for an answer. Don watched in amusement and laughed, handing a couple of the hundreds back to him. "You overestimated." Looking over at Chloe, he smiled, "Yeah, take her. She's no use to me when she's all mopey and sad anyway."

Chloe glared at Don as Lex shook his hand and took the money back. Safina patted her on the back and smiled. "Go have fun with your friend," she whispered before grinning at her.

Lex wrapped his arm around Chloe again and walked out the same way he came in. "So," he started as they trudged through the sand together. "Where's a good place to shop around here. I'm feeling a little out of place." Chloe laughed and followed Lex back to the car he had parked in the little beach lot.

"You got a car?" She asked puzzling. It was nice nonetheless, but he didn't need a car. No one needed a car.

"I thought it would be easier."

"But it defeats the purpose of being free on the island. Look, I know you probably are still living in this weird fast paced, make the most of the time lifestyle, but you're on my time now. So, let's take the car back. Then I'll take you shopping."

Lex stared at her as he hit the button on the car. She was incredibly tan and sexy in the shorts that barely covered her ass. The pictures he could get of her were not doing her justice. He shut her door and then slowly walked around the back of the car wondering if he had made the right decision. He probably should have continued the emails and the phone calls. He wondered how long he could keep up the charade of being her friend.

The two dropped off the car and caught a cab back into town from the airport, continuing the never ending spat over the reason not to have a car if you have to use one to get around. "Look, as soon as we get to the shopping center and downtown, you won't need one again. You might need a bike though." Chloe bit her lip and smirked in his direction.

"What?" Lex canned blandly.

"I have a bike to go from my place on Water Island to the ferry. It just makes the travel a little faster. You may just want one unless you plan on jogging next to me in your Armani shirt and pants." Chloe pointed over at a building and had the man stop the taxi.

Lex paid the man, and the driver nearly choked at the tip he received. Leaning over into the window of the cab, he whispered, "For your trouble."

"No problem sir." The man cautiously touched Lex's arm and handed him a card. "Just in case you would like to have a car for later," he whispered and rolled his eyes in Chloe's direction.

Lex had to let out a mild chuckle and shoved the card into his wallet before the driver took off. "What was that about?"

"Nothing," he smirked as Chloe grabbed him around the arm and started into the mall with names of stores that Lex had actually heard of. "I think while we're here, we should also pick up something for you for tonight." That caught her attention.

Chloe was somewhere between happiness and incredible stress. She felt nerves coil up inside her like she hadn't since her conflicted feelings about Clark years ago. Lex was there with her, his hand now locked in her hand. His intense stare in the cab and the purposed walk was the same old Lex. The emails and the phone calls would have been easier to hide her growing desire to have more. But he was Lex Luthor above all else, and untouchable.

Trying to gain her composure, she saw a mannequin in the window and pulled on his hand, "Look, that is still somewhat debonair and yet looks comfortable and you're going to need something for your head."

Lex looked over the window of the store. "Ok, but if you even suggest something with one flower on it, I get on the next plane." Chloe giggled and slapped him in the chest.

Quickly removing her hand, she realized that she may have crossed the line. She glanced quickly up in Lex's direction and tried to laugh off a smile.

"Deal," she tried to cover, but Lex watched her face get flushed as his heart beat faster. Taking a long exhale, he let go of Chloe's hand and placed it at the small of her back as she entered the store.

He watched her immediately walk to the pants and stare and at the different colors. "How about I look and you tell me yes or no. Then at least I get something I picked out." Chloe nodded as he gazed quickly across the entire store and then back at the rack they were in front of. Holding up three different pairs of pants, Chloe rubbed her chin and tried to play stupid.

"Well…"

"I'm getting all three," he stated flatly and hung them over his arm before starting to the wall of shirts before Chloe could finish play her joke. She wasn't being funny. Lex knew she was trying to hide something because her actual snark was not straight forward and yet her softer side was failing miserably too. Slowly, he wondered if he had made mistake as he walked through the store.

"How about this one?" Chloe held up a nice white long sleeve button down, striped with tints of violet, gray, and blue. It was truly a shirt for him. Lex took it from her and held it to the slate color pants.

"Good choice." He stared at the other shirts in the same area before choosing several others. She knew him well enough to have bypassed all the short sleeve island wear and still keep it classy. He smiled at her as she nodded in agreement to the other choices.

"I'm going to go look around now. I was honestly concerned that you would have no idea how to shop, but you seem to be capable." Chloe started to walk off and felt his hand tug at her. Trying to keep her composure, she pictured him swinging her around and kissing her. Shaking her head, she turned to him.

"Something nice. We're going out somewhere special for my first night here. And just so you know, I have been shopping before." He let go of her hand and started flipping through the racks again. Chloe stared blankly at the man before wandering off for another hour.

"I'm finished. Enough damage is done." Chloe stated throwing her clothes up on the counter on top of Lex's. Her eyes grew at his pile he had accumulated, pants, shirts, belts, shoes, socks, sunglasses, and the all important hat. Looking back up at him as he laid a light knit jacket on the pile, she crinkled up her face questioningly, "Did you pack?"

Lex chuckled as the woman behind the counter started to ring them up. He noticed the two different outfits and secretly chose one in his mind that he had to see her in. "Actually no. I was coming direct from another overseas call and had some time in my schedule. So, where I was is still cold and I have nothing for here." He handed the young lady behind the counter his credit card.

"May I see some ID?" Lex looked directly at the woman in awe. Was she serious? She pasted a polite smile on her face and waited patiently as Lex looked for his license. Chloe covered her mouth and giggled, knowing how odd it was for Lex to not be noticed. "Thank you Mr. Luthor." The woman finished in polite silence and handed the two bags to Lex.

Walking out of the mall area, Chloe couldn't hold it in anymore. Busting out in a full laugh, she leaned over holding her stomach, "Your face was freaking priceless!"

Lex leaned over and touched her in the small of the back as she continued to laugh. He whispered in her ear, "Not as good as your face was after you slapped me in the chest. If you wanted to know what my abs felt like, you could just ask." As casually as he delivered the line, he stood up and summoned the driver of the same taxi as before to take them to the hotel. He was not giving up the knowledge of his home there yet. That fight could wait.

Chloe felt her heart race at his obvious catch of her actual action. Stopping her mind from racing, she thought, he's flirting with me. Trying to desperately not look shocked, she followed Lex to the car. "Where are we off to?"

"The hotel to change." He glanced over at her. "I figure it is easier than a trip to home and back in one evening. Besides, you followed my lead and bought an entire outfit or two." He watched her eyes as they deceived her and trailed down to his chest again. His worries about how she would take his impromptu appearance quickly faded when she didn't remove her hand from under his.

**********

Chloe appeared from the modest size bathroom at the hotel in her lime green tube top dress and light sweater. Lex watched as she took a clip to her hair when she looked in the mirror. She hadn't quite counted on not having the ability to refresh her make up beyond what she carried in her purse and not have her brush with her.

Lex sat in the chair across the room and wondered why no one had ever seen what he had seen. She was something to be reckoned with whether she was breaking into his plants or just observing. She was a strange breath of fresh air that added to the sea breeze that he hadn't expected. He had missed her.

"So?" she turned and asked him as she pinched her cheeks a little to fake the color of her already tan face. Lex stared at her and sighed. Rubbing his chin, he looked a little puzzled and it worried Chloe. She thought the dress was perfect casual and yet dressy enough for anywhere on the island. "What?" she remarked snidely.

Lex walked across the room and dug into the drawer that he had already arranged all his clothes in. Chloe eyed the result of Lex's anal behavior and almost laughed. Biting her lip, she wondered what he would have to say to the massive pile of clothes that are just heaped in the middle of the bathroom floor.

Pulling out a white box, he laid it on the bed and removed something from it without her seeing. "Come on, let me see," she jokingly whined as she tried to come around his side. He maneuvered his arms to keep her eyes from sight.

"Be still Miss Impatient." That stopped her. She wiggled up her nose and sat on the edge of the dresser in front of the mirror as he fisted what he was getting and put the box back in the drawer. "Ok, come here pokey. You know I thought with all your new experiences that you could have at least given up on the whole sleuth thing. Guess bad habits die hard."

As she stood up, she could sling it back. "Yeah, and I would love to see Lex Luthor NOT drink scotch this weekend either" as she smelled the glass that was sitting on the counter. Lex stopped and smirked at her, rethinking the gesture he was about to make.

"I'll make you a deal. I'll drink only drinks with little obnoxious umbrellas while I'm here and you guarantee me you have not done any snooping while you've been here and will be able to resist asking a thousand questions. Deal?" Chloe smirked and shook her head. She and Lex had always been as close as to the same playing field in intelligence when it came to the two in Smallville.

"How would you know if I was just lying to you?" Lex tilted his head and stared at her before rolling his eyes. "Ok, you would know."

"Come here and turn around." Chloe stood in the front of the mirror and pulled on a couple of strands of hair to make her face match. She watched Lex's hands disappear into his pockets again and wondered what he had gotten her. Her heart beat faster where she could see the cloth of the tube top actually move. She hoped Lex couldn't eye the same effect he was having on her. He was just her friend, her only friend from her past. Nothing more.

Drawing out the small beaded necklace, he gently swung it around her neck and let it drape down in between her small bit of cleavage and caught the other side of the clasp before putting it together. Touching the back of her neck, he wanted to smooth out the necklace over her collarbone and shoulder, just to feel her under his fingers. The closest he had ever been was hugging her after her father's passing.

"Lex, how did you know?" Chloe put her hand over the necklace and tried to calm her heart at the same time. The simple jade necklace complimented her outfit completely.

"I was observant as you shopped. I noticed that you had no accessories. Here." He placed the matching earrings and anklet in her hand and sat back on the edge of the bed. She caught a sneak peek at the man behind her while putting on her earrings. He actually was letting his OCD go on the trip. The light gray pants and the shirt she picked out went well together. He hadn't tucked it in but just rolled up the sleeves a bit.

"You look nice tonight. Comfortable."

"I feel like I'm wearing pajamas, but it is light." Standing up, he held out his hand as she finished with the anklet that made her leg look so damn sexy. "Shall we?"

"Where are we going?" Lex glanced down at Chloe next to him in the hallway and nodded his head.

"I knew you couldn't keep that bargain." Lex chuckled as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and wished she would lose the damn sweater.

*********

"I'm really surprised that you took my advice. But it's nice to see a familiar face," Chloe commented as the two made their way down the stairs to the sand of one of the more empty beach spots. She marveled that she had lived there for several months, Lex just did his homework. Stopping at the bottom stair, she removed her shoes and watched Lex pull his off too. "My my Mr. Luthor, are you going to get your feet sandy?"

Picking up both pairs of shoes, he heard her try to protest him carrying hers as well but gave up quickly. "As long as I have no delusions of strange people and bonfires like my honeymoon alone on a deserted island, I'll be ok." He glanced over and saw Chloe process the information and look concerned. Putting his other empty arm around her, he guided her toward the water. "Really, don't worry. I think you'll protect me."

Chloe slightly giggled as they continued down the beach until she felt Lex tug on her arm a little. One single cabana top had not been removed from the beach. "Come on," he almost whispered as he pulled on her in the direction of the beach lounger. Sitting back in the lounger, he eyed another couple that passed by them on the beach in the surf screaming when something in the water brushed against the woman's foot.

"Silly, it's water," Chloe shook her head disapprovingly at the screech. Sitting on the edge of the lounger, she balanced out the weight on the lounger as Lex leaned back and placed his feet on either side of her. "This is why I haven't left," she stated as she looked at the sun turning the sky pink and orange.

"It's nice. I didn't quite appreciate it the first time seeing I was going out of my mind." Lex laughed as Chloe turned around and tried not to giggle. "It's ok, it's funny as hell now." He watched her shiver even with the small sweater on. Her skin glowed in the place between sun and moonlight. Taking her arm, he pulled her gently back toward him. "You're chilly."

Chloe's breath caught in her throat by the surprise touch. At dinner, the little innuendos from the hotel room had stopped completely in exchange for discussion of his last business trip and her jobs on the island. Now, his hand barely grazed her upper arm and shoulder and pulled her body into his. Taking a chance, she scooted in the seat back into him, leaning her head into his chest. "This is your first beach trip since then?"

"First vacation since then," he answered flatly, but felt nothing remotely like how he spoke. Closing his eyes, he could smell the faint orchid and salt of her hair. He ran his fingers up and down her arm as she turned slightly on her side away from the breeze. "Thank you Chloe," he whispered.

The two laid in silence for the longest time, concentrating on the warmth of each other and the sound of waves lapping quietly against the shore. Chloe closed her eyes and could feel his breath on her shoulder and his fingers never stopped trailing her arm. She had never asked how long he would stay; she didn't want to know. She didn't want things to go back to what they were; she was beyond emails and phone calls now. She felt a large lump almost painfully tug at her stomach as she found herself returning the small gesture of rubbing his bare arm with her fingers.

Lex shifted in the seat trying to free up some of his chest to breath. She didn't weigh anything and yet his airways seemed to constrict every time her fingers lingered on his arm. Closing his eyes, he concentrated on his breathing and realized that three days was not going to last. Leaning his head down he eyed her bare skin and felt a warmth envelope him. It wasn't the same sensation as with other women he had been with. He had never spent so much time with a woman like this, so silent and yet not needing anything. He thought about his last words. Chloe was a woman now. It had been easier when he pictured the teenager at the other end of the computer or phone line.

Leaning his head over, he couldn't resist. Placing three kisses down the bare part of her neck, he nuzzled briefly in her ear, "There was something there." Leaning back against the chair again, he felt her fingers stop and briefly start up again on his arm. He could feel her shudder underneath him.

Chloe bit her lip and popped her eyes open when he leaned back. We're friends, she thought to herself as she continued running her hand over his arm. It's just the island and the alcohol, and the sunset, and the fact we both need something else to occupy us. She couldn't think straight as his hand left her arm and finally ran along her hip.

Feeling her body stiffen, he sighed silently to himself. He was overstepping. "We should go," he whispered in her ear. Chloe closed her eyes and hoped he would kiss her skin again. She had never pictured the man more than a good romp and womanizer. And yet…leave? Go? He just said they should leave and go back to their own places and… She couldn't do it; she didn't want to leave his arms. It had been too long; they had been through too much together for so long.

He had never even touched her as a teenager, even through the months of her hiding. She was just a kid, a kid he just kissed three times. But his body language seemed to change underneath her. She had stiffened up at his touch, but it wasn't like he was picturing. She wasn't a kid anymore and he was never a billionaire to her. She looked up at him and caught an exhale from his mouth as he glanced down at her.

She scooted up higher against his chest and smiled, "Why?"

"It's getting late." Lex tried to keep a straight face now knowing his intentions weren't being met at the same level. Trying to pull himself up against her, he came face to face with her in the chair.

Chloe stopped touching his arm and stared into his eyes. They matched the water with its cold dark blue color in the now increasing moonlight. She felt his arm stiffen to push out of the seat and couldn't let it end this way. Moving closer to his upright body, she closed her eyes and grazed his lips with hers.

TBC


	8. Bliss

Bliss – Chapter 8

Lex's body stiffened as he felt Chloe's lips brush against his. Closing his eyes, a thousand thoughts went through his head, including how he could have read her intentions so incredibly wrong. Thankfully, they were the thoughts he had hoped for since he arrived.

Lowering himself back into the seat, he wrapped his arm around her neck and opened his mouth to her tongue, tasting the soft hints of banana rum on her. He pulled back against him in the seat, leaning her against his chest and deepened the kiss. His body warmed hearing the soft moan from her in his mouth.

Chloe could feel his hands trace inside the top of her dress from shoulder blade to shoulder blade, increasing the tenderness of the kiss. He smelled and tasted so good in her mouth as their tongues continued to run past each other, sliding seductively between teeth and lips.

Losing her breath and possibly her mind, Chloe pushed herself back from Lex's chest and whimpered to herself when his warm lips left hers. She closed her eyes and tried to stop breathing in hitched breaths as his hand still trailed up and down her back, almost teasingly pulling on the back of the tube top.

She was nervous, no almost frightened to look in his direction. She was afraid of what he would say. Did he just return the kiss because he felt it was the right thing to do? Did he…

Her question was partially answered by feeling him sit up slightly in her direction, kissing her neck twice behind the ear. "You know how beautiful you are?" he whispered before continuing to explore her body. He felt her shudder and watched a smile break on her otherwise worried face.

Chloe whimpered slightly at the small teasing trail he left going down to her bare shoulder before sitting back in the chair and tracing his fingers over the same place he had kissed. She turned and gazed at him. Running her fingers down his face, she silently thanked whatever meteor shower had taken his need to shave. A soft smile she had never seen before from the man appeared as he half closed his eyes and tried not to giggle.

Chloe stopped and then ran her finger along the underside of his left collarbone again and saw the same smile twinge form at the corner of his mouth as his eyes completely closed and moaned through a chuckle. "You're ticklish there?"

Lex opened his eyes to an ear to ear smile as Chloe's fingers continued teasing him. He rolled his eyes and could only utter, "uh huh," before feeling Chloe's fingers fumble with the top button of the shirt. Sighing, he closed his eyes again, leaning his head all the way back against the cabana chair and stiffened his abs when her fingers grazed him on the last buttons of his shirt.

"There." Chloe stopped and grazed her hands back up his bare chest. He had played with her skin all night and teased her. Now, to get the incredibly handsome tone man to walk back to the hotel like that.

Opening his eyes, he took one of her hands and kissed the inside of the palm which caused her to jump. "We really should get back now."

"Ok," she whispered as he leaned forward and pulled her into another kiss, not as deep but meant just as much. After writing her for weeks, he had never once believed that where they were at that moment was feasible. Confused, he didn't know where they were or where she wanted to be.

Chloe stood up from the end of the chair and caught the end of it with her foot when she saw Lex's end dip with him in it. Reaching quickly for his arm, she girlishly screamed, "Oh shit," as Lex ended up rolling off the end of the chair and into the sand with Chloe flopped next to him in the sand. "Sorry," she whispered as she brushed the sand off his face and kissed the edge of his lips.

Hearing him grunt unapprovingly, she backed off and took his hand, trying to pull him to his feet. He uprighted the chair on its legs and laughed as he continued to dust him and Chloe off. "Now I see why that one was left here. They hoped it would be taken by the surf," he laughed as he wrapped his arm around Chloe and started the beach to the hotel.

She reached up for another kiss, now having found the taste of Lex Luthor to be her personal number one reason for keeping him around. They could have bonfires with piles of his money and she would still keep him for just his taste and his feel. Her face curled in concern when Lex turned his chin away from her.

He felt her loosen her grip and pulled her into him more, "Come here." He stopped and glanced at her contorted face and smirked, "No offense, but trading wet sand that already is crunching in my teeth, not sensually appealing." He waited for her to process the information, remembering he had met the beach face first just a few minutes earlier. He grabbed her around the shoulders and kissed her cheek.

Chloe smiled up, finally understanding it had nothing to do with her per se, just he wanted the moment to be perfect. "Have you ever…on the beach?"

She pulled from his grip and took his hand in hers as he stopped and looked at something strange that had washed up on the shore. He glanced over his shoulder and laughed at her. "Yes." He pulled on her gently as they continued to walk. "You get sand in places you are sure you will never get it out of."

"Oh."

"I know what you mean by that look, but I was talking more like ear canals and arm pits. You have this constant need to shower afterward. It's not worth it unless you drag the whole bed out to the shore. And then, it's just easier to leave the window open where you can hear the waves."

Chloe nodded her head and said nothing. She had honestly not expected him to be completely honest with her. Or maybe he was making it up, she didn't know. She truthfully couldn't remember the whole answer. Concentrating on his shirt blowing open in the breeze, exposing his chest seemed to occupy her thoughts. "You ok?"

Chloe noticed he turned to look at her staring blankly at his chest. "Yeah, I was just thinking." He nodded and trudged through the thicker dune sand up to the staircase to the hotel, never releasing his grip on her hand. He smirked to himself realizing that he caught her in a private moment between her eyes and his body. Dropping their shoes, he took her elbow to steady her while she got them back on. "Thank you."

Chloe watched Lex slip his shoes back on and lean against the barrier of the boardwalk to the hotel. He pulled her closer to him and smiled down at her. "This is one of the best nights I have had in a long time," he whispered.

"Me too." She wanted to kiss him right there desperately. It was the moment, and yet she remembered he had said no earlier.

Running his hand down the side of her face, he tucked one of the wild strands of her hair behind her ear, he cupped her chin and smiled at her. She felt his other arm slip around her waist as she could feel her leaning into his body, her chest barely brushing against his exposed chest. "It's after nine. There's no ferries until the morning." Chloe stopped breathing when he kissed her neck. "Stay tonight." He felt her stiffen in his arms. "No expectations," he whispered as he pulled back to see her face.

Chloe smiled up at him and pulled away from his grip gently as they made their way up to the room.

*************

"Thank you." Lex closed the door and handed the small bag to Chloe and disappeared into the bathroom where she heard the shower start. Opening the bag, she saw a small comb and toothbrush in it. She hopped up and knocked on the bathroom door.

"Decent?"

"No, but you can come in." Chloe's eyes widened as a small whimper came out that she thought he couldn't hear. "It's fine. The shower curtain is like a lead curtain." She cautiously leaned around the edge of the door and immediately stared at the shower. He was right, there was no way she could even see his form. Feeling somewhat disappointed, she brushed her teeth, leaving the door open as she went from the bathroom to the television.

Appearing back in the bathroom a few minutes later, she almost missed the basin when he stepped out with only the towel around him. "Spit Chloe. Your turn," he smirked and popped her with one of the smaller towels before closing the door behind her. Popping his head in a few seconds later, he shoved a tshirt through the crack in the door. "To sleep in. The bottoms are drawstring."

Chloe held the strange gray and blue striped windshorts up to her and wriggled up her face. "So much for sexy."

When she appeared from the bathroom, she saw the room was already dark except for the CNBC channel going and a strange light from the bed. "You cheat. You have a laptop. Mine got stolen."

"Oh? So that's why the emails stopped. I was wondering if you had run off and gotten married or something and had forgotten about me." He looked up at her in his workout clothes and tried hard not to giggle. "Nice outfit."

He shut the computer screen and placed it on the side table. Pulling the sheets back on the bed, he turned the television off and felt the bed barely dip when Chloe curled up at the other end of it. Putting his arm out in the dark, he felt for her form and pulled her across to the middle.

She felt his arm snake around her and wondered if the statement about expectations was for real. "Lex?" she whispered in the dark while turning. She felt warm breath on her cheek and turned a little more.

"Good night Chloe." Lex ran his hand as well as he could in the dark against her face. Finding her lips, he causally traced them with his fingers until his lips found hers. Running his hand through her still somewhat matted wet hair, he brushed his tongue past hers and released her.

Turning back over, Chloe sighed before closing her eyes. She was a little disappointed in his exploration of her body simply stopping at her hand, his fingers entwined in hers as she could feel his deep breaths against the base of her neck. Closing her eyes, she matched his breathing and fell into a deep sleep.

************

"Good morning." Chloe stretched and felt the rest of the bed was empty. Opening her eyes, she squinted at Lex in white pants and light blue shirt. She glanced over at the clock and saw it only read 8 AM. "Are you nuts?"

Rubbing his head he looked at her and laughed , he sat on the edge of the bed and handed her a cup of coffee. "You know, I turned that pot on about 5 minutes ago. I was somewhat disappointed that the aroma didn't have you stirred in the first 60 seconds."

Chloe downed the first cup and silently handed it back to him and watch him fill it again. "And I'm not nuts. I slept until 7:30, which is about 3 hours late for me." Chloe stopped mid-drink and stared at him.

"You are nuts." She handed the cup back to him and forced herself into the bathroom. "What do you want to do today? You're the guest," she called from the bathroom.

Lex sat on the bed and flipped mindlessly through the little information books. "I don't know. I thought we would go back to your place after breakfast where you can get situated and then go from there." He saw Chloe re-emerge from the bathroom with her dress over one arm and his clothes over the other.

"Thanks for the clothes, and for folding my other ones." Chloe stopped and looked back at Lex as he put his wallet in his pocket. "Are you really that anal?"

Lex looked back in her direction and smiled. "Yes. Shall we?" Lex opened the door and snuck a kiss from Chloe's lip as she passed him leaving the hotel room. To think she was partially afraid that overnight he had forgotten what had happened yesterday she thought. Her thoughts eased feeling his hand run from her lower back and grip her hand.

***********

Chloe sat on the end of the large sailboat and let the wind catch her hair as her face caught some of the spray coming off the front of the boat. Her bright blue bikini almost matched the hue of the water as Lex watched from the back of the boat.

She had finally convinced him to wear the silly hat. He held it on with one hand and watched Chloe over the top of his sunglasses. She turned around and smiled as he nodded to her.

"We're at the stop." The captain of the sailboat cut the engine and threw out the anchor in the location over the crystal blue water. Chloe looked over the side of the sailboat and wondered how far down they could go. "How deep is it?"

"About 25 feet; you can go to about 20 feet deep with the equipment before the pressure starts to build. You'll know when you feel it." Jake eyed Lex and disappeared down below quickly. He had been well compensated, for all three outings he would miss that day and then some.

Lex walked up to the front of the sailboat and sat down on the extra large towel that Chloe had stretched out on the top. "Hey, how about a little mimosa to get the morning going?" She turned and took the glass from his hand. He sat down and set the small tray of fruit down that Jake handed him earlier. "And breakfast."

He didn't know exactly how long Chloe would want to float; the previous 'boyfriend' seemed to be long gone from her mind and Lex hoped he didn't bring up old memories. "I never pictured you like this," Chloe said casually, tugging at his thin white pants.

Lex leaned over closer to her, balancing on one hand while kissing her neck. She tasted salty, but still smelled like flowers. "What do you mean?"

Chloe turned and maneuvered her shoulder up into his chin. His lips gave her goosebumps against the slight breeze. "This. You in linen pants and a shirt flapping in the breeze. I mean even the sunglasses here look less … intimidating." She turned and ran her hand down the button side of the shirt, barely touching his chest. "I guess I honestly couldn't picture you ever doing this with someone like …" She trailed off.

"Helen?" Chloe's face popped up and her mouth opened. "Don't say it. Don't worry about it." Taking her empty glass, he set it behind them and continued on his exploration of her warm shoulder. "I…" One kiss. "am…" Another. "here…" Another. "with…" Another. "you." Chloe stopped and felt his breath on her neck and turned, just in time to get a mouth full of chocolate strawberry.

Seeing her shock and watching the juice dribble down her chin, Lex couldn't help the chuckle. "You were so expecting my mouth?" Chloe held the rest of the strawberry and bit it off as she shook her head up and down. She picked up a piece of pineapple and returned the favor.

Jake returned an hour later and quietly interrupted the two, removing the food and drink while pointing Chloe in the direction of the latrine. Jake watched her carefully disappear below deck and then had to ask, "Newlyweds?"

Lex turned and glared at the man, who obviously didn't know who Lex was, first, and didn't mind being personal, second. "No, we're friends."

Jake rolled out the tubing for the equipment and attached the mask while pulling out the brand new fins and other gear Lex had bought for them. He could adjust to some things, like touching ocean water, after knowing what bacteria lingered in it, but would not wear rental equipment of any type.

"She's a darling girl. You two actually look really good together." Jake looked oblivious to the death stare he was getting from Lex as he continued to fix up the equipment.

"I'll keep that in mind. Do you dive with us?"

"Only if you want to have me. Otherwise, I just sit up here and watch the gauges. When you get to about 10 minutes of air, I tug on the harness twice." He helped Chloe up the stairs of the underbelly as Lex met her at the back of the boat. "Ya'll ready? You get about an hour down there and then we pull anchor and go one other location before lunch."

"Come here," Lex grabbed Chloe's hand and pulled her into his lap on the side seat of the boat. Hearing something pop, she turned as his palm hit her warm back with ice cold sunscreen. As she tried to loosen up, his fingers slid in and out of her strings on the bikini and narrowly down into her bottoms. Thinking of turning around and correcting him, she realized when his hands came around her shoulders with more of the lotion, he was simply being helpful. Still watching the tips of his fingers disappear into the cups on her bikini top, she wondered if there was more to it.

"Now you." She turned and watched him easily pull his shirt and pants off, revealing a simple pair of probably overpriced board shorts. "Nice, but I was expecting something shorter." Lex rolled his eyes and smirked at her secret hope there was more to reveal. He closed his eyes, feeling the motion of her fingers against his skin, first his bare back and then his chest.

Chloe eyed his look and could feel the deep breaths that overtook his body as she circled and recircled until the lotion was rubbed in well. "Ready?" she whispered before catching a quick peck on his lips while his eyes were still closed. Jake caught a glimpse and instantly knew at least one of them were not playing friends.

Jake explained all the equipment and Chloe continued to keep her giggling perfectly bottled up watching Lex get his equipment fitted. Shaking her head, she honestly wondered what kind of money she could garner from picture of Lex Luthor in a snorkel mask and flippers. Eat your heart out Britney Spears – I have the picture of the decade, she thought.

The two dropped into the warm water together and stayed close by as the small, brightly colored fish surrounded them. Jake handed both a small baggie that had compacted fish food in chunks. He explained that the other charters were slowly killing fish by feeding them dog biscuits and other non-marine food.

The two couldn't speak to each other through the tubes but pointed at the strange bright fish and the stingrays that glided easily through the sand. She glanced over more than once and caught Lex's face even through the mask. He studied everything as if there was a quiz at the end.

Feeling the tug on the tubes, the two smiled and headed back to the surface. Pulling her mouth piece out, Chloe flung her mask up on the boat the same time as Lex. "You know there were perfectly beautiful fish down there to look at," he chided.

"Yeah, but your species down there was…rare." Chloe jumped feeling his foot lightly swat at her. Taking one hand to the back end of the boat, he glanced up to see Jake rolling hose.

He wrapped his arm around Chloe's waist and pulled her very light body into his, for the first time feeling mostly skin to skin. "This has been incredible. Thank you." He gazed at her and brushed the wet hair sticking to her face out of the way as his lips searched for hers. Feeling the hitch of her breath, he increased the kiss while wrapping his other hand around her waist.

Choking, the two bobbed back to the surface and shook their heads before breaking into laughter. "Next time, one of us has to continue to hold on," Chloe stated before taking Jake's hand and exiting the water.

Lex laid next to Chloe on the front of the boat as they slowly made their way to the next location per his request. Partially, he hoped that if the boat moved slower so would the day. He had one botched honeymoon and countless rendezvous that he had tried to recreate what came so naturally right then.

Chloe leaned up on one hand and looked over him, his chest now comfortably open to the sky and to her. She gazed at his face and couldn't remember the calm that seemed to take over his features. She almost thought there was hint of a smile creeping out of the corner of his mouth. "Whatcha thinking?"

Lex opened one eye in her direction as she giggled. "How gorgeous your hair is all matted." She sneered at him and slapped him across the chest before feeling his head lift up to meet her lips quickly, knowing he could sneak a kiss while she tried to think of a snarky remark. "Really? Contemplating how I could run LuthorCorp from this boat."

Chloe covered her face and shook her head. "Seriously?"

"No," he answered, "but it sure would be nice." She smiled at him as he closed his eyes and pulled the stupid hat over his face. She continued leaning on one arm as Lex lifted the corner of the hat to see her face. Circling his arm around her body, he pulled her down into him.

The two spent the rest of the day sailing and eating between verbal judo practice and making out. Jake resisted questioning Chloe; he felt they both were trying to play the friends card.

Jake came up from the inside of the boat and felt strange having to disrupt them. "Sir, there's signs of a front blowing in over the outer waters and we need to turn back." Lex looked over his shoulder and nodded as Chloe readjusted in his arm. He couldn't remember exactly when she had fallen asleep there, but didn't mind.

When the boat finally docked around sunset, Lex helped Chloe onto the marina pier and walked back toward the hotel.

"I really enjoyed today. I have to admit that I never pictured myself doing any of that either." Lex uncharacteristically swung Chloe's hand in his as they reached the ferry dock for her home, and secretly his. He wasn't quite ready to explain that to her, knowing that would come with a lot of other questions.

"I can't wait to get the pictures of you in a snorkel mask back."

"You do realize if they ever make ANY magazine, paper, or tabloid, I am coming after you." Chloe reached up and kissed but he didn't move from his position.

"Fine." They stood with their arms wrapped around each other on the dock as the wind picked up. "I guess Jake knew what he was talking about," Chloe added as she caught Lex's hat before it blew away. Handing it back to him, she smiled. "I have to go."

He let her go after kissing her once more. He liked the banana taste on her better than the mango, but she was still soft. "I'll meet you at your place tomorrow morning." Pulling her into a longer kiss, he quickly debated inviting himself back to her place for the night. In the end, he shoved his hands in his pockets and watched the ferry pull away.

TBC


	9. Joseph

Joseph – Chapter 9

[i]Chloe woke with a start and looked at the other side of the bed seeing it empty. Their second day together was blissfully lazy. She remembered Lex arriving at the ferry drop off with his hands full. Directing the man behind him, they walked to the small hidden beach location on the natural park end of the island.

She wondered the amount of money Lex must have bribed the owner with to set up on the private location that was surrounded by nothing but palms and crystal blue water. They spent the entire day under one tree and watched schools of fish swim by in the shallow water.

Occasionally she would lift the edge of her hat and see him holding the pen in his mouth as he worked. She knew he couldn't have gone the entire time without doing something. He was still Lex Luthor, as much as she wanted him to just take up the title beach bum. She buried herself further into her current novel but briefly got to run after the contents of one of his folders when he even fell asleep in the afternoon breeze.

He had cooked that night for them. The food was perfect, the slightly stronger breeze blew through the little apartment that made the night more perfect. She even smiled at her landlord innocently as Lex pulled her back into the small living room and shut the door after the sun went down.

She had never imagined three days earlier that his appearance in Don's bar would have led to her being happier than she had been. She remembered hearing his voice made her nervous that he may have brought Smallville's problems with him. Even as he closed the doors and shutters that opened out to Magnil's place last night, she didn't picture it.

Lex took her hand and traced his fingers up her arm as he whispered, "What do you want Chloe?"

She remembered hesitating as her words and her thoughts wouldn't agree on how to handle his loaded question. She closed her eyes and felt his hands continue to stay in G rated spots on her body. She could only feel herself walk backwards to the bed until she remembered seeing his chest from inside the billowing shirt hanging off his body over her.

Burying his face into her neck, he whispered, "Tell me to stop." Chloe's eyes squeezed shut as she let out a gasp, feeling his hands guide gently down the middle of her chest.

"Don't stop," she gasped as his lips grazed her collarbone. In the back of her mind last night after they made love, she wanted to desperately ask him when the last time he had taken things so slow. He wasn't exactly the lovemaking type she thought. His sexual encounters were more like automatic. Yet, last night they played and teased for hours before finally her body couldn't take anymore.

Looking around on the floor for her clothes, she couldn't even find where he had popped her panties off to. She remembered them sailing across the living room though. Pulling the light blanket from the end of the bed, she wrapped up and went out on the porch.

Plodding to the balcony, she saw a chair change direction slightly followed by a lone hand come out from the other side of the doorway. Taking his hand, she sat down and smiled over at him. "Hey."

"Sleep well?"

Chloe laughed and covered her mouth. "Sleep? What was that? Like two hours."

"I didn't hear you complaining last night," Lex drolled as he ran his hand through her hair. His briefcase sat next to him, which he noticed she looked at. "Don't worry – I can't even make myself open it this morning. I actually wanted to go check out the fort here and the nature preserve. Get up and stretch our legs today, at least before the rain blows in."

He looked up at the clouds that had gathered the night before. He thought he even remembered the faint sounds of thunder in the background, but couldn't tell if it was really thunder or the small bed shaking in the little apartment.

Chloe lifted the cup of already poured coffee to her lips and shook her head. "I've lived here and haven't even explored the area." Lex smiled over at her and got up, brushing past her to see what he brought to change into from the day before. Lifting the end of the blanket up, he lifted one eyebrow at seeing her still bare.

"You may need to find your underwear first."

************

Lex put his hand out for Chloe as they made it up the steeper of the small climbs in the hiking trails that the island was known for. Chloe wanted to laugh when she saw Lex finally appear from the bathroom several hours earlier in windshorts and hiking shoes. It was a surreal moment that the billionaire was going to go hiking.

Now, though, she wasn't laughing. She had in the past hour managed to smack herself in the face with a tree branch and lose her footing, sliding down part of a rocky trail.

She looked up over the top of the peak they had walked to and sat down next to Lex. "How's your knee?"

She lightly ran her hand over the small spot that was an interesting mix of red, brown, black, and blue. That would bean attractive bruising addition to any more bikini shots. She would definitely photoshop that out. "It's bruising."

Lex leaned over and kissed right above it, still causing a slight twitch from Chloe. "We could go back."

"No, it's just a scrape. You and I both know I have been through a lot more crap than a bruise." She leaned against Lex's shoulder and closed her eyes. The wind was a lot stronger than the last couple of days and even the smaller boats in between the two islands had issues trying to maneuver through the channels.

"It's clouding up quick today. At least it will be cooler somewhat for the last day." Lex glanced over at Chloe as she gazed out over the view of St. Thomas from where they sat. He could feel her grip on his arm increase when he dropped the words last day. He told her earlier in the morning as she got dressed that it was only a weekend but he would definitely be back.

Truthfully, he wanted to take her back with him, or at least know she was safe in his place. As much as he loved it here, he couldn't stay, but it was getting harder and harder to leave her alone again. He hoped sitting on top of the small island would slow the day down, if he didn't look at work, it would just disappear and no one would ask about where Lex Luthor was.

"What are you thinking?"

Turning his head, he kissed the top of her baseball cap. "How I could convince you to come back to Smallville with me." Chloe pulled her head up and looked at him. Nodding, she leaned back on her hands and glanced up at the sky.

"No, this is my home." She pulled her legs into her and rocked back and forth. Lex watched her seemingly retreat into the strange position as if she was trying to hide something. She had her reasons to leave, to explore, but he knew there were still parts of her that longed to get back to the hustle.

"If not Smallville, how about Metropolis?" He glanced over and Chloe barely acknowledged him. She didn't want to think he was actually trying to do what he was. She was not Lana or Clark or anyone else that rolled over to Lex's whims, no matter how many times she had called his name the night before. "I'll buy the Daily Planet for you. Make you the headline reporter and your annoying investigating of me incredibly easy."

"How about you move here?" She glanced at him. "Come on, rich people play here all the time while making billion dollar deals." She eyed him as he somewhat nodded, thinking about the place he already had. He hadn't even been there yet. He had it modified to run corporate meetings out of. The idea wasn't foreign to him. The plan of breaking the news to her, though, was.

He gazed over at her face as she adjusted her hat. He hadn't felt so attached to someone in a long time. They had both been through so much together, good and bad, and he had trouble picturing his leaving her. Biting the inside of his lip, he let the matter drop as he felt raindrops hitting him in the leg.

Chloe took his hand and they continued walking under the cover of the tropical tree canopy. They occasionally felt drops of rain that seeped through the leaves and struck them on random body parts. Crack of thunder became louder and distinctly closer together as the winds picked up and blew the rain from the trees down upon them.

Pulling her hood up, she glanced over at Lex and noticed he had steadily been moving faster as the storm seemed to bear down on their little location. The ground started to become slippery and she was sure she was going to stumble again. "We have to slow down."

"Just a little further," Lex barely got out before Chloe's foot slipped out from under her and Lex threw an arm under hers before she tumbled to the ground. "Are you ok?" he almost had to yell over the rumbling of the rain and wind through the trees.

"I hit my ankle," he barely could hear her cry as she pulled on his arm to stand up. Leaning against his body, she wrapped an arm around and hobbled as well as she could the other fourth of a mile back to the house.

She cornered the entrance to the Magnil's driveway and saw the main house completely boarded up, including the car covered and tied. "Come on. I'm sure she's fine." Lex pulled Chloe's body into his and lifted her injured body up the stairs to her place without putting weight on her foot.

Unlocking the door, he settled Chloe into the couch and propped her foot up on the living room table. It was swollen but not broken since she had stood on it for moments coming over the last ridge.

Chloe watched as Lex pulled against the wind and jammed the shutters to her place shut and locked. Some vacation it turned out to be for the billionaire having to do his own work she thought. "Turn on the TV or the radio!"

Chloe clicked on the remote to the television and saw the scroll across the television. "After gaining speed and strength over the abnormally warm waters this year, hurricane Joseph took an unexpected turn around seven last night and is bearing down on the US and British Virgin Islands. 53 minutes ago, the hurricane center in Miami, Florida reported that Joseph was upgraded to a category 2 storm. Although this means only moderate flooding issues, VI residents are encouraged to seek shelter in a sturdy brick or mortar building away from possible impact surges."

Chloe glanced over at Lex while he wiped the soaking rain from the outer bands off his face. "Guess you may get to stay another day." Lex put his arm around her and kissed her neck before readjusting the ice pack on her ankle. He pulled her into him and ran his hand up and down her arm while watching the television images of the waves blowing in from the bands already hitting the islands.

Chloe jumped in his arms when the shutter across the room blew open against the archaic lock. "We should try to get to somewhere safe." Chloe nodded and attempted to put some things together to go over to the other house she assumed. "Lex!" she screamed at him when he disappeared over to Magnil's place and beat on the door before finding the note flapping against the paper clip on the inside of the mailbox.

'Keys are in the car. Meet us at Fort Segarra or go somewhere safe and sturdy. DO NOT stay in the house. Magnil.'

Opening the door to her house, he pulled out his cell phone and dialed. "How's the house holding up?"

"We've got the shutters pulled all around and the outside systems locked down and covered sir. As requested we already stocked the wine cellar and cooler and have enough diesel stored for two weeks. Are you planning on making the trek?" Lex hunkered down in the corner of Magnil's house trying to hear man with the thick accent on the other end of the line.

"We're at her place right now, which is not going to make it. She's injured and we are going to try to get the car through. Look for us in about 30 minutes. Sit he power still on?"

"Yes sir, but probably not for long. I must go air; the maid is having a time getting the rest of the lawn furniture tied down." Lex heard the phone click and beat his head against the wall in Magnil's foyer. This was not the way he wanted to explain himself. Shoving the phone back in his pocket, he ran back across the yard and up the stairs to see Chloe sitting in front of his and her bag and some small provisions.

"I couldn't think of anything else. Magnil?"

"She's gone already but it didn't say where. She left the car for us to get to a safe location." Chloe hobbled across the living room and grabbed her bag. Lex threw the other bags over the opposite shoulder before grabbing her around the waist to help her down the stairs. The wind already pressed her against him and the rain soaked both of them through to the skin.

Starting the car, he looked over at her and pulled her into him. "You really didn't want me to leave, did you?" he tried to joke. Chloe wrapped her hand around his neck and slid her tongue almost forcefully down his throat. Feeling the intensity of the kiss, he returned the savage act, feeling her pulling on him tighter.

He pushed against her and started the car, "hold that thought." Looking behind him, he pulled out of the driveway and headed to the other end of the small island.

"Lex, the fort is the other way."

"It's probably overrun with locals and those that caught the last ferry from St Thomas. Chloe," he paused as they drove slowly past the Sprat Estates sign. He watched her eyes follow the sign until it was out of sight before taking another breath. "Chloe, what's going on here?"

Chloe glanced over at him and wrinkled up her face in confusion, "Umm, we're driving around in a private neighborhood in a hurricane, and I'm injured. What the hell kind of question is that?!"

"No, I mean…"

"Lex! Watch the damn road!" she screamed as the palms fell from the trees lining the best paved road on the island and barely missed taking out the windshield. "Look, I don't know, but we could talk about it when you fucking turn around and go back to For…"

Chloe's mouth dropped as she watched a man in a bright rain slicker hand crank the iron gate back between the two pillars. Turning to Lex, she saw his face. He turned a paler shade of his collected self and sadly looked over at her. "This wasn't the way I wanted to…"

"You fucking asshole," she whispered as they pulled into the garage of the home and she stared at the Porsche parked in the slot next to them.

She felt Lex try to comfort her as she stiffened her arm and stared out the opposite window. The garage door dropped and the sound of the winds and rains seemed to cease. Hurricane Joseph was right outside, but Typhoon Chloe was about to blow.

TBC


	10. Typhoon

Typhoon – Chapter 10

"Chloe," Lex started in as she flung his hand off her arm and reached over and honked the horn in the car repeatedly. Seeing the side door open, she opened her car door.

"Excuse me! I don't know your name but if you wouldn't mind giving me a hand into the house, seeing as I guess I am now stuck here." Chloe held her hand out of the car and balanced on Charles' arm as he looked at his boss confused. Lex just waved him off silently and got out of the driver's side alone.

Leaning on Charles' arm, Chloe made her way through the house she had already been in once. Not even looking back over her shoulder at Lex as he moved the bags into the more sturdy structure, she limped along with Charles to a room she didn't remember and was completely devoid of windows. Chloe sat down at the small table and peered at the walls. The man had a wine cellar.

Lex followed them into the room and shut the door before turning on the lights. Chloe stared at the one wall that was racked with wines, another wall with a full kitchen and Murphy bed, and a cooler she could only imagine was stocked for the duration. "Sir, I'll be in my quarters," Charles stated as he turned to another door.

"You're going to make him go back out in that?" Chloe was livid at Lex's ability to blow off his help.

Lex slunk into the couch across the room as the lights from the generator were starting to finally kick in. "No, he has another room down the hall. I had a few modifications done, including this and a couple of other rooms that disappear into the side of the island. Modeled after fort here."

Lex sat and stared at Chloe as she continued to fidget in her seat, rubbing her hand along her ankle. She dared not to make eye contact with the ass that obviously was the reason for her being disconnected from the world for a month.

"Are you hungry?" Lex asked wondering if Chloe would even acknowledge him. He opened the cooler and pulled out one of the ready-made sandwiches, knowing to conserve the generator as much as possible. Mulling over his choices, he pulled two out and laid one next to Chloe on table.

She stared at the obvious peace offering and picked it up. Watching her flip it around, Lex hoped he had made a good decision but saw very differently when the sandwich went whizzing back into his lap across the room. "Chloe, you've got to eat."

She limped over to the cooler, turning and pointing at him with a determined to kill him look on her face, and pulled out a bag of frozen vegetables. Limping back over to the table, she rearranged the chairs and propped her foot up with the bag on her ankle. Digging into her backpack, she pulled out a granola bar, water, and a book.

"So, this is how you're going to handle this. Chloe, just let me explain." She could hear the pleading in his voice and could tell by his stance that she could see his feet were in, he wanted to apologize. He had broken her trust in him though. He had violated her by taking her things and lied to her about owning the place.

And to think she was ready to tell him that she was falling in love with him. That she would happily accept almost any deal to stay with him on a more permanent basis. She had no desire to return to Smallville, but she thought she had a legitimate case for him to stay with her. He was a different person on the island, or she once thought.

Now, he was just Lex Luthor all over again. Always with an agenda. He probably took her laptop and phone wanting to know what exactly she had been doing on the island the whole trip. And to think that she had opened up to him. "Chloe," she heard again.

"Shhhh." She spit across the room as she raised the book higher in front of her face. She knew the conversation was going to have to take place. Conversation my ass, she thought. It's going to be a brawl. She wanted to rip him apart for deceiving her.

***********

"Is it still raining?" Chloe asked as Charles emerged from the door leading to the outside world. The highly effective digital clock in the wine cellar/safe room showed that only a few hours had passed in the day.

"Yes ma'am. Can I get you anything?" Chloe looked around noticed the defrosted bag of peas and pointed at her leg. Charles smiled and quickly removed the vegetables. "If I may suggest, your skin is starting to turn, and you may be giving yourself freezer burn."

Chloe leaned over and touched her ankle. "Yeah," she said as she poked it a couple more times and felt nothing. Her ankle was completely devoid of any feeling and bright red. Charles watched and placed a blanket underneath and then turned to Lex. "Thanks."

"Anything right now sir?" Lex had watched the entire exchange with Charles and Chloe. Lex just eyed his servant and nodded his head. Chloe, meanwhile, disappeared again behind her book.

The two sat in silence and listened to the small radio play hurricane warning and updates over and over until Chloe had memorized the report for the last few hours. The woman from CNN actually had said two days. Chloe glanced over at the clock again and rubbed her hands through her hair. Silence for two more days. She was Chloe Sullivan, and beyond anything, that wouldn't happen.

"I am SO pissed at you. You were the asshole on the other line that took my computer and phone!" Chloe pulled her foot off the chair and balanced to stand higher than him. "You know how important those are to me!"

Lex said nothing, but not for the lack of words. He wanted her to be able to finish and get out whatever had been building in her system. He simply nodded yes and for once thought playing the normal husband role of staying quiet would do him more good than harm.

"I couldn't call you or email you or talk to anyone on the outside. I know surprisingly enough, I have enjoyed my time here but that doesn't mean I was ready to go live on a deserted island void of human interaction." Chloe started spinning her story in circles. She yelled and screamed and walked in small limping circles.

"You had Magnil, Safina, Don…you had interaction." Lex kept his eyes low and watched her as she continued to move, wondering when she was either going to explode or fall.

Chloe raised head and huffed. "YES! But not with the outside world. I mean this place as wonderful as it is only took a few weeks to either get the same as everywhere else or you disappeared into it so fast you couldn't find the real world again. I needed that connection."

"Why? It's not as if you talked to anyone else." He caught the glare that Chloe shot him. She knew he had checked her old phone calls and her Internet history. "Your best friends were completely ignored." She hated Lex when he was calm. She should have just continued yelling at him in the car. He was making having a fight difficult.

"You just don't get it," she screamed, throwing her hands up in the air. "I needed that … that link to something familiar that wouldn't piss me off or make me hate myself or make me feel guilty." Lex watched her flail her arms around as she tried to find the words to explain her reason for the technology need.

Standing up and edging toward her, he didn't want her to fall and hurt herself. He placed his arms around her shoulder and tried to draw her in. Chloe wriggled out of his clutches and slapped him across the face.

"Chloe, what the hell?"

"Quit saying my name like that! And don't try to comfort me – you …"

"What? Chloe?"

"QUIT THAT NOW!" Chloe hobbled across the room and picked up the wine bottle that Lex had slowly been nursing over the last couple of hours. As he approached, she waved the half empty bottle at him. "You come near me, so help me God, I will make sure there is only one person in this room to eat all that food!"

Shoving his hands in his pockets, Lex nodded and tried to keep the small smirk from appearing on his lips. "Have some more," was all he could say without suggesting a drunk Chloe would be more reasonable.

"Fuck You!"

"I would love to," Lex let slip from his lips and quickly looked up as Chloe caught it. She took several more swigs and stared at him. Her body suddenly felt warm and even more angry.

"God, you are SO freaking infuriating! Why don't you let go of your damn balls and argue back you sissy? You took my damn computer to spy on what I had been doing? FINE! I haven't been able to give up EVERYTHING that my high school life was about. I even asked about working at the goddamn newspaper here where I could write about the latest cruise ship arrival or hurricanes, not that I can see much through the fucked up wine cellar that is my grave apparently."

"Chloe, we're not going to die down here." Chloe twisted her neck around again and headed back over toward him, swinging her fist in the direction of his jaw. Her eyes flared when he caught her hand and dropped it. "Quit hitting me."

She pulled her hand from his grip and snarled at him. He was a pain in the ass, impossible to argue with. "You're an ass."

"Good, we've come full circle." Chloe glared at him silently. "So, really, why are you so angry? I took your computer and phone from you. I would have done it to anyone breaking into the house."

Chloe turned and threw her hands up in frustration of the circle she felt they were creating in the conversation. Firing off words faster than her brain could process, Chloe continued to ramble in a scream. "But you know they were MINE! You knew who they belonged to – you knew that if I didn't have them, we couldn't talk to each other and I would go crazy because I …"

"What?" Lex whispered, still cautious after being threatened with a wine bottle.

Chloe stared at him, "I fucking missed you ok? Of all the damn people in Smallville, I missed you – you and I had a connection that no one else attempted with me and everything was going so perfect having your emails to look forward to and phone calls and you cut me off!"

She watched Lex continue to stare back at her, waiting to see what else she would say. He wasn't going there, where she wanted him to go just yet. He had missed her contact too. The weeks that they had not spoken his secretary, poor woman, spent more time planning his trips out of town and away from his computer at the mansion for a reason. He couldn't stare at his email icon and refresh all night long.

He had started it as a game and somewhere along the third day, he wished he could have done things different.

Chloe watched as his gaze went from her to the floor. More anger welled up inside of her, disturbed that he was being so callous about the whole event. She ran her hands through her hair and leaned against the opposite wall, not daring to sit down and give him the upperhand.

"So, from that expression, apparently my needing to hear from you meant a hell of a lot more than the other way around. Well, thanks for that. I left Smallville to get away from people making feel like crap and the crap followed me after all!" She huffed and turned away, spinning one of the wine bottles on the shelf to see the label. "And to think I thought I had fallen in love with you," she continued and hitched a breath. Closing her eyes, she beat her head against the butt of a bottle. "Crap," she whispered.

Lex's eyes shot straight ahead as his heart started to beat out of his chest it seemed. He approached her, still keeping his hands in his pockets. Staying a clear foot from her, he could still duck if she swung at him. He couldn't decide on the phrase that would get him least likely injured. He closed his eyes and hoped the side of a wine bottle wouldn't break his cheek. "Absence makes the heart grow fonder."

"Heh. Just get on your damn jet when the rain blows through and get the hell out of my life."

"I can't do that Chloe," he whispered over her shoulder, taking another step closer.

"Why? Afraid your little mansion on the island will be exposed to the public if you leave me and I take my revenge out on you?" Chloe bit out, trying to gain her hardened composure.

"No, I was referring to my heart." Chloe turned and looked at Lex, still with his hands in his pockets.

"What?" she bit back.

Lex stood still and watched her eyes continue to blaze with anger. The worst that could happen was that she would just reject him for being scheming and he would leave. Leave and never be able to fall again.

Pulling his hands out of his pockets, he rubbed them together carefully as Chloe noticed the uneasy move. She lowered the bottle to the chair and stared at him. "I played with your heart and I ended up getting burned."

Chloe threw her head back in frustration. "Look, I'm not interested in your games or your devices or your schemes. I left to get away from all that crap. I'm tired of all of it, so say what you need to say and just leave me alone." She watched Lex's hands as he still nervously interlocked his fingers, wringing them repeatedly. Breaking eye contact with her, he dropped his eyes to her throbbing ankle. "Fine."

Chloe hobbled past him to the small bed. He turned and watched her start to arrange the pillows to sleep. "Fuck it," he whispered to himself as he grabbed his temples before walking over and pushing her back against the pillows. "You want me to say it?"

Chloe stared up at him and didn't move, knowing she couldn't with him holding her in place. She watched as his jaw move as if words were trying to be formed by a former mute. Changing his tactic, he plunged his lips onto hers and felt her fight underneath him and then her mouth open to his. Refusing to deepen the kiss, he pulled away and looked at her eyes. Tears rolled out of the corner of her eyes.

Her lip quivered with the sudden taste of him and the instant pulling away when she was about to give in. Her mind raced wondering if that was her last taste of him when she heard him whisper as he wiped her face, "I'm sorry. I just…" He didn't know how to finish it.

Chloe watched his mouth try to form the rest of the sentence. Touching his face with her hand, she bit her lip to stop the almost nervous quivering. Closing his eyes to her touch, he thought about the one four letter word that gave him so much grief.

Seeing her face, he swallowed, "I love you Chloe Sullivan."

TBC


	11. Aftermath

Aftermath – Chapter 11

"What?" Chloe whispered wondering if she had heard him right. She let her hand drop from his face, knowing that without her touch, he would have to form the words for himself.

"I love you," Lex whispered to her with more conviction than the first time. It was odd to hear the words come out of his mouth. He wondered how they had scared him for so many years and stared at Chloe.

Chloe's mouth opened as he felt her hitch a breath underneath him. Running his fingers through her hair, he was careful not to wrap his legs around her ankle. He had already caused her enough pain for the day. "Since when?" was all Chloe could muster.

Lex looked at her with a cocked eyebrow. He was hoping for her to repeat what she had said a few minutes earlier by mistake. Continuing running his fingers down her face and through her hair, he thought about the question. "I honestly don't know. You were always beyond special to me and we have a …"

"Bond." Chloe finished the statement and stared silently into his steel sad eyes. He was sad, even after telling her that he loved her. She wondered how she could get the carefree Lex back from a couple days ago. She closed her eyes and could continue feeling his hands on her face and then fingers trailing down her shoulder. "Oh God," she whispered.

"What?" Lex stared at her. He hadn't really touched her in that way and it didn't sound seductive.

Chloe opened her eyes and gazed into his. His eyes never left her face. She wondered how many women Lex had actually just gazed at without looking as if he was going to undress them. Feeling his touch and heartbeat, she knew what he wanted. "Lex, I'm sorry I blew up. You just make me…"

"Mad? Irate? Ready to hunt and kill?" He continued running his hand up and down her arm, keeping a careful balance over her. She hadn't kneed him the groin yet, so he was still thinking positive.

"Confused. You're Lex Luthor and you control…everything. I don't want to be controlled. When you brought me here, I realized how little control I have." She watched as Lex's eyes left her face for the first time since he pushed her back against the pillows. She slowly felt him start to slide from her. Grabbing the front of his shirt and wrapping another hand around his neck, she resisted him pulling away.

"BUT," she quivered, "I love you. And I need you more in my life than not."

"Chloe."

"No, wait. You can't control me…no more games…I just want to be us like the last three days."

Lex gulped and choked back the thought of him not able to completely keep her from doing what she wanted. She was and always had been the independent one. The only of all the women he knew that were only ruled by their own hearts. "No controlling," he whispered.

Chloe nodded her head and pulled him back into her. Feeling his tension against her hand, her lips started quivering thinking she had blown it. "Lex?"

Lex swept his hand down her face while still leaning over her with the other. She dropped her hands from him as his eyes glazed over and she suddenly felt a strange cold draft form around them. She sighed and knew it was over when the wind stopped.

He stroked his hand through her hair as her eyes faded from his. Moving closer to her, he could see her sudden lost look that she had when her father died. Leaning down into her, he kissed her cheek and whispered, "no games." He turned her chin to him and wiped her now damp face. "I love you, and I want you to tell me when to back off."

"Can I tell you when to let loose?" Chloe's face broke into a smile as her hand snaked around his neck again and pulled him into a kiss. Starting first off slowly, she felt Lex's hand entwine into her hair, pulling him closer to her. She parted her lips to feel his tongue slip next to hers as she let out a soft moan.

Lex felt her other hand snake around his back as he lowered himself gingerly beside her, still mentally placing where her bum ankle was on the bed. Chloe maneuvered to the side to leave Lex room next to her. She felt him deepen into the kiss as his body came down to her. Letting out another moan, she jumped slightly as his tongue flicked against the roof of her mouth.

Feeling a groan from Lex's throat, Chloe tugged her hand harder against Lex's neck and made him kiss her even deeper before feeling his lips graze the side of her chin and down her neck. "Lex," she breathed before he felt her slightly lift her hips in the air as a wave of passion flew through her.

He looked over his shoulder and cursed himself before leaving her presence. Chloe's eyes shot open as he went around the corner and disappeared. Throwing her arms out wide, she silently stared at the ceiling and wondered what she had done wrong. She closed her eyes and willed herself not to cry.

Lex returned and looked at the tears that peaked out of the corners of her lids. She thought I left her. Silly woman. Lex let the small wrap go and sat on the edge of the bed. Chloe's eyes opened to Lex carefully picking up her foot and putting it in his lap. "Tell me if it hurts." She watched Lex carefully wrap her ankle in the brace from the medical kit. When he pinned the last bit together, he smiled at her. "I didn't want it to get tangled or hurt again when we…"

"What?" Chloe smiled mischievously.

"Wait for time to pass. Listen to the rain," he got up from the bed and strolled across the room.

"Lex," Chloe drawled out. "I thought I said," she stopped when an explosion came from outside the metal door and another click soon afterwards. "Lex? What's going on?" She yelled in the dark. It was pitch black. Nothing.

"The generator will kick in in a second," he calmly answered from somewhere in the abyss of the black hole of a room. Just as he finished, soft lights illuminated the room almost like candlelight. Chloe thought it was a trick but all the appliances clocks blinked; the power really was out. Her eyes refocused on Lex walking toward her.

"I love you," dropped from her lips as now a topless Lex sat down on the bed next to her. She sat up and started at her shirt again before feeling Lex's hands on hers.

"Let me," he whispered as the shirt easily came off and followed quickly by her shorts. She watched and winced as he lifted her ankle out of her shorts without even causing her to feel it. She gazed at him, feeling the sudden need to cover her now naked body up.

Curling up, she felt his hand turn her back to face him, "You're gorgeous." He leaned in and kissed her soft flesh of her stomach as she reached for his pants, happy to see the ease they would come off.

"Not as tight as the women you've," she stopped as Lex placed his mouth around hers and moaned while running his hands over her breasts.

"You were plenty tight last night if I remember," he whispered before his pants dropped to the floor and he pulled the sheet over the top of both of them. She gasped feeling his tongue trail down her chest, stopping to tease her briefly.

"What are you doing?" she gasped barely able to find words.

"Riding out the storm," she heard in pieces as the trail of kisses drew closer to her belly and Lex disappeared under the sheets.

Throwing her head to the side while moaning, she grabbed the sheets with her hands. Gasping again, she turned and saw the shadow on the wall as her legs parted and Lex's head disappeared into the shadow.

************

"Are you ok? Your ankle?" Chloe almost thought she had heard Lex purr into her neck. She still had small waves that overtook her as she felt her muscles between her legs starting to contract.

"Don't worry about my ankle Dr. Luthor." She smiled and laughed as she pulled Lex's bare leg back over her thighs. "I'm going to get some sleep."

Lex felt her turn toward the wall and carefully turned with her, wrapping his arms around her naked body and pulling it into his. "Goodnight honey." He kissed her on the shoulder blade. "I love you."

Pulling his arm up to her face, she smiled to herself hearing the honey. "Goodnight. I love you too." She kissed his arm and placed his warm palm over her breast. She heard him moan into her back before a small sigh and then deeper breaths against her back.

*************

**CRASH**

Lex and Chloe both jumped from the bed and stared at the mess on the floor that used to be the wine rack. "The wind is getting stronger," Lex said as he got out of bed and looked at the still blinking clock.

"How long were we out?" Chloe asked as she pulled the sheets up around her, suddenly missing his warmth.

"About an hour," he stated as another crash came from the other side of the door. He watched Chloe jump against the side of the wall in the bed.

"Sir? Are you ok?" Charles spoke from the other side of the locked door.

"Yes, but I think we're moving in." He picked up his pants and shirt and handed Chloe her clothes. "I'll get some things together." Chloe nodded and got dressed, pulling on her boots painfully. She wasn't risking her ankle and glass in her feet.

"Can I help?"

"Grab the lights, flares, and satellite telephone out of the drawer over there. I got food enough for all of us. Charles, get some of the waters packed up and we'll meet you in your room." Chloe pulled out the telephone that looked like something out of the seventies. Lex may have pulled a fast one by purchasing the place, but at least was well taken care of.

Lex took her by the elbow and steadied her over the now dark rose colored cement stained with wine. "How much money is running across the floor right now?"

Lex looked down at her and back over his shoulder, "Not anywhere near how much you are worth." Chloe stared at him condescending. "About $5000."

"That's it?"

"For obvious reasons, the best stuff is still safe in…"

"Tornado alley. Brilliant plan there." Chloe looked around and sat down on the small couch that was part of a little living room area. "Lex, you really take care of your help." She was amazed that the room, albeit smaller, was fashioned exactly as his room next door, minus the fancy wine that now was nothing.

"He is very good to us, regardless of rumors that he shoots in the back if we don't listen." Charles answered as he put the remainder of the food in the small refrigerator before another woman walked through. "This is Carmen. She is the maid for the quarters."

"Hi, sir?"

Lex looked over at Carmen. He had found her through a service on the island and paid her double to leave her other position. She had been a sound investment. He wondered if he could just find the same two types of people stateside. Straying quickly, he wondered what the purpose of stateside was anymore when looking at Chloe.

"Can we have the spare bed made out?"

"Already done sir."

Lex nodded up at her as she continued to put away what the three brought from the other room. Lex took Chloe by the waist as she bent over to help load the shelves. "Come on; they get paid very well to do this." She took Lex's hand and followed him into the room that was the size of a large closet. Pulling her down on the bed next to him, he didn't even fight to undress her. He just wanted her close to him.

*********

"Sir?" Charles whispered and knocked at the small door. "The storm has passed sir."

Chloe stirred first, looking over and seeing the lines of emotional and physical exhaustion on Lex's face. Sitting up, she motioned for Charles to quiet and watched him slip away. She laid a small kiss on his cheek and then brushed his lips. "Lex," she whispered.

She heard a moan that sounded like honey. She liked her pet name. It was simple and it came from his lips. She kissed him again and felt his hand pull her deeper into the kiss, moaning honey into her mouth.

"It's over. The storm is over." Chloe stated breathlessly as Lex let her go. She watched his eyes open to her and pulled off of her. Taking her hand, he took a deep breath and appeared in the small living space with Charles and Carmen.

"Let's go see the damage."

************

"On my three," Lex, Carmen, and Charles braced against the door and pushed. Chloe watched, gritting her teeth. As the door slid past the weight on the other side, Chloe's jaw dropped.

"Oh God." The four stood just inside the doorway and surveyed the damage from the parts that couldn't be hidden from the storm's wrath. The dining room table laid on its side against the other side of the door and the living room furniture was thrown about, cushions soaked and wood most surely rotting as they watched. Tree branches were everywhere and plaster from somewhere flowed through the house, catching in the drain.

Lex walked out and pulled the plaster from the drain. He looked back over his shoulder as Chloe covered her mouth in sobs. Walking back over to her, he hugged her. "It's plaster and furniture. You're still here and that's what matters."

Carmen and Charles eyed their boss and stepped carefully among the broken branches and glass from what used to be the kitchen cabinets. One of the hurricane shades in the main living room had given way and destroyed the main part of the house. "Come on, let's go see what else is left."

Chloe leaned into Lex as she began to walk better on her now rested foot. They followed the trail of bits of paint and plaster that washed down from the bedroom area and stopped. Pushing the door open further, Lex looked at the hole in the ceiling of the brightly colored room. The funky shaped lamps and art deco shaped bed were all broken. The books all ruined that adorned the shelves. The computer ruined.

Chloe walked past him and spied the computer flipped upside down in the pile of mess. Bending over to grab it, she stared at the room and back at Lex. "This is my computer." Lex looked down and shoved his hands in his pockets, leaning against the wet doorway. "This was my room." She looked at Lex. "You had a room built for me."

Smiling, he looked at her as she stared at the soaked books and smiled at her favorite titles. "I'm thinking of turning it into an office now." Chloe's head shot up, concerned. Lex bit his lip and mentally tried to backtrack. Meeting Chloe on the floor, he took her hand. "Seeing as your room now is," he paused, "going to also be with me."

Chloe blinked in question as Lex pulled her up and out of the pile in the room. She silently followed him to the room at the end of the hall, stepping over more debris and glass. Lex opened the door and stood in the doorway, mentally taking notes of everything that would have to be fixed.

Chloe entered the room and covered her mouth. The four poster bed was not the deep violets and blues of the Luthor mansion. The rain made the sheets look a dingy gray but the whole room was shades of beige and white. She turned and looked back at Lex. "Stay here Chloe. It's not a game and I am not controlling you, but I want you…"

"But Lex I have a home." Chloe stopped and thought. "Home," she started to breath heavier and Lex caught her as he knew what she was thinking. Wrapping her hands around his shoulders, she cried, "What about Magnil and the others. My house Lex. My things."

"We'll go as soon as we can get out." Lex held her as she fell to her feet in the middle of the master suite, bawling into his shirt.

************

The two slept along with Carmen and Charles in the safe area for two more nights. No room for the time being was inhabitable but Lex had called for work crews to arrive and they worked starting the following morning.

Sneaking into what was set up as a conference room in the house, she stood by the doorway and listened to Lex pace and make phone calls to both repair companies and Luthorcorp clients. She heard him cancel numerous meetings and watched him throw a private fit including the word's, '10 million fucking dollars.'

She wanted to run in and tell him not to stay. He needed to be at work. He needed to leave, but he said he wouldn't until they could check on the others.

"How long have you been there?"

Chloe glanced up and saw Lex looking at her from across the room, still anger poured from his face. "Long enough. Lex, you should go."

Lex walked around the long table and grabbed Chloe by the shoulders, kissing her hard and unexpected. Pulling out of the hot kiss, Chloe's eyes readjusted to see him gazing at her, all the anger now gone. "No amount of money is worth leaving you, not right now." He kissed her again quickly and took her hand. "But, we do have an errand to run."

"Huh?"

She watched Lex pull up the garage door and pull out the truck. "Get in." Chloe looked at him bemused and jumped in the other side as the gate opened to other vehicles going into the property.

"Who are they?"

"Clean up crew. They are doing my house and then heading over to St. Thomas to rebuild a bar."

"A bar?" Chloe sat and stared at Lex as he pulled around the last truck loaded with panes of glass and drywall boards. "Lex, what did you do?"

"Nothing." He looked over at her and saw her disgusted look. "I talked to Don today through an emergency number on St. Thomas. Your little shopping village with Safina is completely flooded out. The mall stores on the island made it just because of the infrastructure. Don's bar is gone for a lack of a better word. It's filled with sand beyond the roof. All the bottles destroyed. It's going to be rebuilt."

"And you're rebuilding it. Why?" Chloe was partly amused and confused by the gesture. "You don't have to do this for me Lex. These people go through hurricanes all the time."

"Because I like the man and I like his scotch. You know I never knew that you could get scotch made that way from rum before. Let's just say that little upstart local friend of his is going to be famous someday."

"With your help of course." Lex smiled over at Chloe as she nodded her head. It was true; Don's friend had curbed the market on moonshine scotch and if Lex approved of the taste, one mention and the man would need more than a garage to produce.

"So where are we…" Chloe stopped and looked at the flattened parcel of land as Lex slammed on the brakes, avoiding the overturned fence.

She looked over and saw Magnil's car pull up from the other direction. Getting out of the car, Lex sat silently and let Chloe and Magnil take in what they found.

Both houses were gone. The small garage where the truck used to be was nowhere to be seen and appliances littered the front yard of the house. "What am I going to do Chloe?" Magnil fell in Chloe's arms and the women cried for a few minutes.

Lex walked up and hopped over the remnants of one of the fences. "We can salvage some and take it back to my place for the time being." Chloe looked at Lex and smiled at Magnil. Shaking their heads, they spent the next few hours picking up pieces here and there and tossing them into the truck bed.

"Magnil, Chloe told me that you used to work for Whitesman back in the states."

Magnil looked over at Lex and was curious at the statement. "Yes, in the acquistions division out of Chicago. That was…wow…you were only like 12 when I was there. Why?"

"What was your function there?" Lex kept his voice down as he saw Chloe watch the two in conversation.

"I was the personal assistant to Steve Whitesman, Carl's second son in charge." Magnil stopped and looked down at Lex and followed his body language as he stood up. "Cut the crap Luthor. You still have your father's genes, but God I hope not all of them."

Magnil may live in desolation as far as Lex was concerned but Whitesman was a company no one ever ignored. When he was younger, Lex remembered many trips his father took to Chicago and always came home angry. Never ones to sell out, the Whitesmans simply paid off their employees more than they should and closed up shop instead of selling themselves to his father.

When Chloe spoke about Magnil, Lex did his research. The name was unusual, but he had heard it. Finding her in old records still in the Luthorcorp archives, he smiled. He chuckled to himself, somewhat freaking the older woman out. "I want you to work for me."

"What? I'm done with that game. I was on the other side too long." Magnil put her hands on her hips and then waved Lex off.

"No," he said as he took her by the arm. "I need someone here to take care of house and phone calls and appointments that I set up for here. And Chloe." He paused and looked at the expression on Magnil's face change.

"What's the catch?"

"No catch. You have a salary. A place in the house. And anything you need for you and Chloe." He waited as Magnil looked up at him skeptically. Looking back over his shoulder, he watched Chloe digging through remnants of her closet. Leaning into Magnil, he whispered, "Chloe's special to me and you are special to her." Magnil just sneered and waited for the young man to try again.

"I love her, but I know she won't leave."

Magnil slapped Lex on the back and smiled. "Good boy." Leaning into him, she sniffed as Lex looked at her strangely. "And you smell better than your dad. Sure, I'll take your job, but I'll have you know that I'm not into the games that Whitesman and Luthorcorp played and I will call you on it and tell Chloe and…"

"Stop. Chloe's already brought down that hammer. Don't worry."

"Worry about what?" Chloe walked up with a pile of wet clothes and dropped them ceremoniously on Lex's feet.

TBC


	12. Getting on With island Life

Getting on with Island Life – Chapter 12

"Nothing honey. Lex has offered me to stay with you in his nice, albeit damaged, home." Chloe cocked one eyebrow at Lex and put her hands on her hips and glared back at Magnil. "He offered me a job while we get back up and running."

"Is that so?"

Lex watched the two women exchange glances and then tried to smirk. Magnil watched Lex's silent exchange with Chloe and smiled. "Yes, that's so. And I told him if he so much as made a wrong business decision under my watch, I will pull the rug out from under him without his knowledge."

Lex threw his head back and genuinely laughed at Magil before picking up the pile that Chloe had deposited on his feet. The women went in search for a few more items that they could salvage but knew most everything would be insurance writeoffs and carted off by Lex's hired company.

The next few days were filled with general work. Lex opened up the conference room and set up shop as soon as he could get the helicopter to land at the private pad on the estates. Chloe sat at one end of the conference table and wrote an article she wasn't even sure she would get published. Lex and Magnil worked to get the Luthorcorp divisions in communications out to the islands to rebuild telephone and Internet lines.

Chloe spoke a week later to Magnil while Lex was still buried in his paperwork in the conference room. "How much money has Lex put in the rebuilding of whatever he is involved in?"

Magnil eyed Chloe and hated to be put in the position that Lex had discussed with her. They had sat in a closed door session together for several hours working on details of a contract that even Chloe was not privileged to. Magnil smiled and looked up from some accounting proofs, "I can't discuss that with you."

"He thinks I'm going to write it about it?"

"Yes." Magnil looked over at a despondent Chloe and rubbed her hand down Chloe's arm. "Look, I love you like a granddaughter, but he and I have a firm business contract. I have dealt with men and companies like Luthorcorp. Lex seems wonderful to you and I love seeing you two so happy together, but my job requires that you funnel all your questions through him."

"I was just curious. He never speaks about it but I see the logo all over the island and St. Thomas."

Magnil glanced in Chloe's direction and knew the young woman wasn't stupid. Leaning over toward her, she whispered, "He loves you, but I think secretly he kind of likes the lack of rush working here gives. So, you thinking that all of this is because you're here may not be the whole truth. No games dear." Magnil paused and stared at Chloe. "And, it's all legal."

***********

Chloe stretched as she felt the light white sheet unravel around her body as the sun streamed through the open shutters of the now redone Luthor villa. A month had passed from the hurricane and she still was shocked at the sight that she saw as she fell back into the plush pillows.

The sheet barely covered his naked body as he took up more of the bed than she did on a normal night. One leg tangled on top of the sheet, she liked the look of his newly tan body. They hadn't been to the beach since before the hurricane but she smiled thinking about hours he split between conference calls and manual labor.

Against his better wishes, she had snapped photos of him as he and Charles reassembled some of the cabinets in the kitchen. She marveled that Lex didn't mind doing the work for himself. Remembering him from Smallville, she was always surprised that he would even pick up a phone for himself.

"Morning beautiful," she whispered running her hands over his bare chest. "What will the men on the board think when you start scheduling meetings at one in the afternoon."

Lex turned and stared at her has he slid his hands behind his head, "No way. That's during the afternoon siesta." Chloe giggled and buried her face into his chest. Lex reached up and ran his hand through her hair before kissing her. Glancing over to the clock, he smiled. He couldn't remember the last time he had slept until 10 AM. It was nice being comfortable.

"Morning folks." Lex shook his head as Magnil sat the small tray of coffee and pastries on the lanai overlooking the inlet. "Contracts need to be signed and faxed within the hour. You have a four messages and the arrangements we discussed are enclosed."

Magnil had a way about her. She never called Lex Mr. Luthor. She explained it sounded like his father's name and would never but spit nails at the name. Charles and Carmen commented they didn't like her type of casual relationship with him and Lex explained it was simply the island way. Magnil was going to be the ultimate force to reckon with if he and Chloe ever had issues.

"Oh, there's a paper on the tray for you Chloe. There's this really interesting article that you might be interested in reading. Some C Sullivan wrote it and," Magnil chuckled as Chloe grabbed her robe and ran out on the lanai and grabbed the newspaper.

"Lex?"

"I had nothing to do with it. Really." Watching Chloe as she ran back to the bed, she flopped next to him and started reading the detailed description of the rebuilding efforts that had taken place so far on the island. Lex hadn't made any calls, just given her an interview, finally.

"They printed it!"

"Good," Lex commented as he patted her on the back. "Maybe now you could get your check and pay me back for some of the work I did on your office." Chloe glared at him and slapped him with the paper.

"No, they said a couple of days ago that they would call me if they want anything else. I mean it's a start. It's only local, but hopefully if they call me, I'll be able to travel the other islands…you know see the area and write different things and…"

Lex pulled her down to him and grazed his lips against his. "Take a breath." Chloe smiled and returned the kiss, throwing the paper to the floor. "Get under here," he whispered as he pulled her on top of him and slipped the robe off her before slipping his tongue into her mouth to her moan.

***********

Chloe walked into the conference room and sat down across the desk from Lex and watched as he punched figures into the laptop and balanced the pen in his mouth carefully. "Magnil said you needed me?"

Lex looked up and then back down at his laptop. He didn't want this conversation. They had been happy as possible in the face of destruction. He had rebuilt most of the island up from the ground again except for Magnil's small plot of land. Don's bar had been reopened a couple of night's before and things were settling down on the island.

Chloe finally received her call from the newspaper on St Thomas and wanted her as a feature writer. He knew it was a far cry from where her first dreams at the Daily Planet were, but her desire to drag him to the beach the last couple of days since the article came out was indication that she had no plans on leaving.

He loved her. She loved him. It should be enough. They had been apart before. But it had been a month since he had been to Metropolis. He never would tell her the amount of deals that fell through or the amount of money he lost in the month they were together. Not that the money was the bottom line anymore. She was…and whatever she wanted.

Closing the laptop, he looked across the desk at her, catching her trying to read the contents of his file open on the desk. "Your snooping could use some work."

"Ehh, it's not exactly the same kind of snooping that I used to do. I think besides you buying this place, there isn't really any scandal going on here I could sink my teeth into. Anyway, what you need?"

Lex came around the edge of the desk and took Chloe's hand. "Let's take a walk." Chloe looked up at Lex and saw something in his mood change as his smirk left his face. Following him out the door, she followed him through the house to the path down to the private beach.

"You remember the first time we came here?" Lex took Chloe's hand in his as they walked the small parcel of white sand, now littered with still broken tree branches.

"Yeah, and here I thought we were going to some little remote place you had found or asked a concierge about." Chloe tried to make light of the conversation but the grip of Lex's hand increased as his pace slowed.

Pulling her up to the edge of the sand, Lex dug in and sat against a tree and pulled Chloe down in between his legs. She threw her legs over his and faced him as he locked his hands around her waist. Chloe gazed into his eyes and could see the deepness of the blue change to something she hadn't seen since Smallville.

His silence was deafening, and Chloe knew in that instant what the conversation was going to be about. She had been asking for a couple of weeks and then stopped once her position at the newspaper had come up. Things seemed so normal. "You're leaving."

Lex stared at her and tucked her hair back behind her ear, making an excuse to touch her as much as he could before the fateful trip. "Tomorrow. Chloe," he shook his head and broke eye contact with her, "You mean more to be than anything, but I have to get back to work. There are a lot of things at stake that I can't handle from here."

Chloe had grown a lot in the few months that she had separated herself from the small town and its inhabitants. She hoped that Lex admitted that she had also moved beyond her childlike state into something more mature. Fighting back the impending tears, she nodded and ran her hand down his face and his chest.

"I understand. And Magnil?"

"Magnil is my personal assistant here, and more important, your friend. I expect nothing less of her when I'm not here." He felt Chloe scoot closer to him and closed his eyes when she laid her head on his shoulder. Running his hand through her hair, he cursed his life suddenly and wanted to sell it all.

"I'm going to be ok. I have the newspaper, which I'm sure you will read even in that mansion back in Smallville. And Don needs me back at the bar. Safina took her insurance money and is moving back to the states with her daughter though." Chloe was quiet in her rationalization and Lex knew she was talking herself into being ok.

Lex pulled her back where he could see her face. If she was in tears, he would have to stay. Holding her head in his hands, he watched Chloe shrug her shoulders and nod in approval of him going. "Chloe."

"I love you Lex, but I don't live with my head in the clouds anymore and don't believe that meteor rocks can make someone fall in love and forget themselves." She paused and traced her hands over his chest and kissed him on the cheek. "Besides, you may not think I've paying attention, but I can mentally add up the amount of cash that you've lost from reading the business pages. Five major holdings walked last week Lex – you gave up nearly 80 million dollars for me, for one week."

Lex stared at her and huffed in surprise. He had said nothing to her about business and she never asked. But the print was hard to ignore. He was stunned at her staunch nature. He had never pictured that he would need her to hold him together. The walk was supposed to soothe her, not let him crumble. "You're not angry?"

Chloe covered her mouth and lightly giggled, breaking the somber mood. "Angry? Lex you have been for a month almost when it was supposed to be a three day weekend. You have poured money into a community that you knew nothing about. And you're being the person you are by going back."

Lex smiled back at her now extremely toothy grin and smiled while shaking her head. "Where were you when I was making tragic relationship mistakes years ago?"

"High school, and I was stupider then." They both let out a laugh and Chloe collapsed her head again into the crook of his neck. She felt him lightly kiss her on the cheek and moved her head to feel his lips graze hers. "I'll miss you," she whispered.

Lex pulled her back and stared at her. Her face hadn't broken. He watched her chin quiver and saw the glassy look of the tears hanging just inside her lids. "I'll be back for the holidays." Chloe nodded and tried to break a smile. "The computer in the conference room has a webcam – Magnil will show you how to sign in to the account where we can talk. And I promise not to take your phone this time."

"Ok." It was simple, but she had no words. She wanted to hear him say it once more time before he turned on CEO mode and forgot about them.

He watched her eyes over his body and then dart off looking into the trees. "Chloe?" She turned and finally hitched a breath as her hand covered her mouth to hide her expression. Lex pulled her hand off her face and kissed the inside of her palm before running his hand under her chin.

Cupping her face in his hands, he gently kissed and wiped the tear that finally escaped. "I love you," he whispered slowly before Chloe's mouth claimed his in a deep passionate kiss. Sliding to the side of the tree, he wrapped his arms around her body and fell into the sand, suddenly not concerned about the fact his head would be covered in it.

****************

"Lex, you're going to be late!" Chloe screamed across the bedroom and into the cracked bathroom where the shower was still going. So they got a little preoccupied in the morning with their goodbyes. She hoped he didn't notice the moment that she had broken out in small tears during their lovemaking. "Lex!"

"Sorry, it's just after being without a suit and tie for a month, it's almost an odd feeling," he commented coming out of the bathroom. Chloe looked over the charcoal suit with light blue shirt.

Reaching up to him, she kissed him and adjusted his tie. "I'm assuming all the light and comfy clothes are remaining here."

"Yes, try not to wear them for pajamas every night." Chloe laughed and slapped his ass as he checked over the bag he was taking back with him. He shoved his wallet, keys, and phone in his pocket before putting on his sunglasses. "Carry the shoe bag?"

Chloe's eyebrow arched at the bag he handed her. "Shoe bag? What on earth do you need one for?"

"For shoes. I found some very nice ones at the duty free mall last week when I went into town to check on the construction." Lex picked up his briefcase as Charles picked up the rest of his bags and they headed out for the pad.

"Mr. Matsui is expecting you tomorrow morning at 10. I already forwarded the required contract papers to his office in Tokyo and notified him that you are in transit. The maid from the mansion called this morning and explained a small electrical fire in the basement knocked out the power to the main office, so you will need to reset personal effects when you return to Smallville. You meeting in Geneva next week has been rescheduled for two weeks from now – Mr. Schlatter's wife had a mild heart attack and needs him home."

Lex nodded at Magnil as Charles put his things into the helicopter and then glanced in Chloe's direction. "Send his wife some flowers for me and we may postpone that one for later. Call and have someone check out the wiring in the mansion for all levels." Lex pulled Magnil aside where Chloe couldn't see. Taking her by the shoulder, his lips twitched.

Magnil watched his face go from expressionless to concern. "She's going to be fine – she was before and will be now. Difference is …"

"Take care of her." Magnil nodded and smiled at her boss and her friend's love of her life. Backing up, she tapped Charles on the shoulder as they left the pad.

Lex turned and saw Chloe's light blue dress blowing in the wind and took a deep breath. Chloe almost skipped over to him and crushed him in a hug that reminded him more of a child than the woman he fell in love with. "November."

Lex looked down and smiled at her, cupping her face in his hands. "19, I know. You're just a baby."

Chloe stared at him and grunted what he could only think was a 'nah uh.'

Pulling her into his body, he lightly touched her lips with his and rounded the inside of them with his tongue before sliding his into her mouth for a warm kiss. Pulling from the kiss, he smiled at her. "Honey," he whispered.

Giggling slightly, he watched the goosebumps appear on her shoulders as he repeated it one more time before crushing her against him. "You have to go," she whispered into his jacket.

Pulling from his grip, she stood with Magnil and held her hand. "He's going to be back dear." Chloe dropped her head on Magnil's shoulder as she could Lex disappear from view.

TBC


	13. Long Distane Relationships M rating

A/N - Here's the deal kiddos....I couldn't make it through a story at PG13, so we're going to call this update M, even though it ain't nearly that hot.

Long Distance Relationships – Chapter 13

"Chloe," Magnil popped her head into the bedroom and knocked. "There's a call coming in for you honey." Chloe rolled over and stared at the clock. She slept later and later each day. Her job at the newspaper required very little effort and the bar was on off-season hours for a few more weeks.

Crawling out of bed, she trudged to the conference room and plopped into the chair, careful to hold her head up where Lex could at least see her in the small camera. "Good morning."

"How are you feeling? Magnil said that you had been sick yesterday."

"Decent. Let me try to eat something first and then ask me. How's the tour of the world going?" Chloe slumped back in the chair, pulling her knees into her.

Lex threw his legs up on the side of the desk in the mansion office and sat back. The method of communication was working the best possible. She understood and that was what mattered. "Almost done. I leave for London tomorrow and then onto Hong Kong. Most of the damage you read about in the papers I've been able to fix minus the idiots in Los Angeles. Guess that's why I like working international."

Chloe smiled and knew he wasn't going to go into detail even if she asked him. "So what else is going on?"

"The Crows won the Homecoming Game last night and this town was lit all night long. And Clark and Lana stopped by a couple of nights ago for dinner."

"Your idea or theirs?"

"Mine." Lex paused. Chloe didn't ask about them much more and Lex wondered if she really cared about their current situation. "They asked about you right before asking to use the mansion for the wedding."

"And what did you tell them?" He watched Chloe's face as the words came out. She didn't seem put off or upset. Her small smile on her face said she was ok with whatever answer he offered up.

"I told them nothing as you and I had left it. And they are going to be using the mansion for the wedding. It's sometime in March. I'll get the exact dates and let you know. I still think you should talk to them. They still care about you even if they weren't not always there for you."

"I know." Chloe drew up the coffee that Magnil brought her to her lips and sipped carefully. "Maybe I should…"

"Do what you feel comfortable with honey. It's not like you're pining over the boy anymore, at least I hope not for my sake." She watched the sly grin creep across Lex's face and shook her head in the camera. "Anyway, I have another call in a few minutes. Tell Magnil I will call her later this afternoon to do some comparative notes and you get better."

"Will do." Chloe put her cup down and looked around at the closed door in the conference room. Pulling her robe apart, she ran her hands over her bare chest, pinching her nipples and seductively watched Lex's position in his chair change. "I love you. Talk soon?" She cooed as she massaged her breasts teasingly.

"Thanks Chloe. This is going to be an uncomfortable conference call."

"I do what I can," she stated pulling the robe together again.

Lex shook his head and rolled his eyes. "Love you too. Get some rest." Chloe smiled as the screen went black. She stared at the screen for a couple moments longer before hearing her stomach calling her toward some kind of food.

Feeling her continual stare at the screen, Lex waited another moment before completely shutting the computer closed. Their conversations seemed to become more natural and simplified every time they talked.

He had been duped into having feelings, whether love or otherwise, with women. They had tried perilously to hold his attention, with only Helen ever actually making it through to his soul. Everyone had witnessed his demise and stupidity in that moment.

He risked a lot when he let the word love drop from his lips in front of Chloe. She had been his friend and things could have easily gone the exact opposite direction. He ran his fingers along the picture in the frame on his desk. He had never kept personal effects on his desk until a few days ago. But the surfer insisted that they needed a picture together. He never realized what an awful lopsided smile he had when he was truly smiling. It was something he rarely remembered seeing.

*************

"I'll get it!" Lana ran through the Kent's house looking for a phone and landed square on the couch. "Hello?"

Chloe sat on the other end of the phone and heard the perky voice answer at the Kents. Lex had informed her of everything that had transpired over the months that she had been gone. She was actually happy for them and knew that it had been wiser for all involved when she had left. Clark would have never made the commitment if she had stayed.

"Lana, it's Chloe."

Lana nearly dropped the phone. "Chloe? Oh My God! Chloe! Hang on." Lana covered the receiver but Chloe still heard her screaming Clark's name before another receiver picked up. "How are you? Where are you?"

Clark sat down next to Lana on the couch and listened on the other line, even if he didn't need to. "I'm good. Tan. And in love. I hear you two are getting married?"

"Yeah, but no announcements…wait, how do you know?" Lana stopped and looked at Clark. Nodding that he had no idea, they waited for Chloe to start talking.

"Lex." Chloe paused as she could imagine the looks that Clark and Lana were giving each other. "Yeah, he and I kind of kept in touch…everyday. I'm living in the Virgin Islands and he came to visit once he figured out where I was and we kind of hit it off from there." Lana and Clark stared at each other and Chloe could tell from the awkward silence that both were flabbergasted by the immensity of the simple sentence.

"So he was with you all the time that Luthorcorp was down there after the hurricane?" Another pause came from both lines. "Chloe, explain hit it off."

Clark wanted to clarification.

Chloe kind of giggled as she tried to sidestep the question and remembered talking to Lex a few nights earlier about Clark and Lana. He wasn't ready for the whole world to know about the two of them, but his laugh indicated freaking out the high school sweethearts was acceptable.

"Lex came to visit me after we had been corresponding for a couple of months. He kind of got stuck here during the hurricane and spent the month with me. Actually, I spent it with him since he bought a house here. Anyway, we are together. Look, I just wanted to keep it between him and me where I was because I needed to get my head straight and so did he. We're good for each other and…"

"Chloe," Clark interjected. "We're not mad. You had your reasons; we were just worried about you."

"And it's good to hear about you and Lex. You two always shared some kind of bond that no one ever understood, as long as your banter hasn't interrupted the foreplay." Lana stated directly as Chloe pulled away from the phone and looked at it, in disbelief.

"No, but we still discuss plenty," Chloe giggled. "I guess we all have grown up some in the last few months." Chloe paused and thought about how awful this conversation would have gone only a few months earlier. Everyone had moved on and found themselves finally. "I guess all I can ask is if there is anything that I can do for your wedding. That is so great that it's going to work out."

Lana and Clark looked at each other and shrugged, "Find us somewhere nice to stay there maybe," they giggled as Clark sheepishly asked.

"Sure. I know a couple of places that owe Lex a favor or two for construction. Look, I have to get going, but I promise the next phone call will not take five months."

"It better not," Lana accused. The three said their byes and Chloe sat on the couch and breathed a sigh of relief. She truly never wanted to go back to Smallville for anything, not even the wedding. Her life no longer existed there. But at least everyone was now happy, including herself.

"How's it going hon?" Magnil walked through the living room and looked at Chloe's face as she put the phone back. "You look a little flushed."

Chloe laid back into the pillows and put her hand on her head as Magnil returned from the kitchen with a wet washcloth. "Thanks. This bug comes and goes."

************

Chloe walked up to the bar and set her stuff behind the counter. "Hey! How's my little walking tip machine?" Don laughed from behind the bar.

"Ehh, tired. But I am really happy to be out and about again. Things are going real good and…where's Rey?" Chloe looked around for the resident drunk that always came in before everyone else.

Don slapped the towel down on the bar and moved around to sit next to his favorite and sweetest bar maid. He never met someone like Chloe. She had been able to stay true to herself throughout her time on the island and from Magnil's explanations, the bald billionaire was the sole reason.

"Rey has a meeting in Metropolis this week." Don dropped without any further explanation.

Chloe's head whipped around from the beach and stared at Don. "Nooooo, he didn't."

"Yeah, your boyfriend called Rey last week and flew him over yesterday to meet with some company to mass produce his scotch. Rey's just stoked as you can get. He was all nervous because he heard what a hard ass Lex was and stayed up all night with his diagrams of his process."

"I'm sure he'll be fine. One thing Lex doesn't screw around with is his liquor and if he believes it will sell, Rey won't need to worry much longer." Chloe watched as a couple walked into the bar and sat at a far table. "I got it." She smiled at Don, happy to be back in the land of living again.

Trudging back up to the main dock later that night, Chloe grabbed her head and slunk into a bench on the side of the marina. The dizziness returned with a vengence the last half hour at work and she wasn't sure what god hated her. "Crap."

She walked over to the small medical center and rung the bell. "I need to see someone about the crud." She smiled as the nurse took her information and showed her to a small room. She silently went through her mind the steps that she would have to go through to keep this from Lex and Magnil.

"Chloe is it? What seems to be the issue?"

"I'm just tired all the time. I get weird dizzy spells and stomach aches. It's nothing really major just annoying and it comes and goes." The doctor nodded.

"Let's get a couple of samples and we'll see if we can figure out what we can do for you."

Chloe sat nervously in the small room for almost an hour as the doctor disappeared to run tests. She flipped through all the magazines and then dozed off on the small table to wake up to the door opening. "Nice nap?" Chloe sat up and smiled as the doctor started talking to her.

Another hour later, Chloe leaned on the edge of the ferry returning to the other island, staring repeatedly at the pamphlets the doctor gave her in addition to the prescriptions that had been filled. It wasn't something you discussed over the phone. She wasn't sure how to discuss it at all. She eyed the edge of the villa from the ferry as they docked and sighed.

*************

Six weeks had passed since Lex had been home. The webcalls had done everything they could possibly do for both of them. Chloe thought about just a few nights earlier, Lex promised the call but was tense and holding a glass of scotch. Something had gone terribly wrong but he wouldn't talk about. Chloe still hated his internalizing everything but tried to help him relax. When Chloe excused herself and reappeared in the camera holding a vibrator, he laughed.

"I want you baby," Chloe purred into the camera as she pushed back the robe she was wearing to reveal her breasts that now looked firmer and larger than normal. She watched Lex as the camera suddenly changed and then he appeared on the couch. It was a good sign.

Lex sat the laptop up on his knees and groaned, putting a hand on the side of the couch and finishing off his drink. "Only a couple more days."

"But I can't wait," Chloe pouted, teasing him while rubbing her hand down her chest and gently tugging on the tie of the robe. She sat in silence with her bottom lip pressed out while she shimmied out of the robe.

"I hope you locked the door." Lex replied still trying to keep his cool, but Chloe noticed the camera moving and knew he was doing some of his own readjusting.

She continued to run her hands over her bare body pushing the chair away slightly to give him a better angle. "Better?"

His eyes closed as he groaned and Chloe knew she had him. "So how are you planning on using your assistant?" Lex moaned again as Chloe ran the almost identical size to himself vibrator over her chest and tucked it into her panties. "Turn it on high."

A curl formed on Chloe's lips as she slipped out of the underwear and started running the object over her folds. Automatically, she moaned Lex's name as her hips started a rhythm. Almost losing herself in the moment, she looked back at the camera and smiled, seeing Lex's head thrown back on the couch as he stroked himself.

The two continued to trade glances as both sped up their own ministrations. Chloe caught Lex as he briefly stopped to pull his ultra expensive pants out of the way and undo his shirt. She stopped briefly, watching as his naked body writhed in rhythm with his hand and listened to him moan her name. Tempted, she thought better than to hit record on the webcam.

"Lex," Chloe panted. Lex's eyes shot open as he watched Chloe shake in the conference chair while balancing her feet on the table. Throwing her head back to the side of the high back chair, she screamed his name, causing his excited release as well.

Chloe pulled her robe together and turned off the well-used tool before smiling at the camera. Lex Luthor, high-class business tycoon, lay immovable on the leather sofa, naked and smiling. "I'll be right back," Chloe heard before he disappeared from the picture.

Returning back to the computer, Chloe noticed his pants back on. "How are you feeling now?"

"Like I should have been requesting that on all my trips instead of booze." Chloe smiled and blew him a kiss.

"See you in two days. Night Lex."

"Night honey." Chloe smiled and scampered out of the conference room. Damn, if she wasn't in the mood again. The man really should not tease her by not wearing a shirt.

***************

Chloe stretched out in the bed and yawned with her eyes closed. 19. She was 19 today and from what she heard from Magnil and Lex was that Don and her would be celebrating her birthday very much alone.

Opening her eyes, she saw Carmen quietly moving about the lanai, setting out her new coffee that she had switched to and fluffing the pillows in the recliner where Chloe spent most of her mornings on the computer. She blessed the day that Lex installed wireless Internet in the house and she never looked back.

Turning she fully expected to run her hand down Lex's empty pillow but saw a small box. Sitting up, careful to keep her bare body covered from the slightly cooler fall breeze, she pulled out the card and stared at.

Happy Birthday Honey. You can tell me your answer in person. But you have to find me.

Lex

Chloe opened the small box and gasped. "Yes," she whispered to herself as she slipped the ring on her finger, threw on her robe, and headed out on her search for her fiancée.

TBC


	14. Holidays Part 1

Holidays Part I – Chapter 14

Chloe walked down the hall with her coffee in one hand and the card in the other. She felt the ring clink against the side of cup and smiled every time she heard the sound. Pushing open her office door first, then walking through the living room and finally the conference room, she sat in his chair in front of the computer fully expecting him to appear on the screen.

"Miss Chloe, you must keep looking," Carmen answered to seeing Chloe fall into the leather chair.

Chloe looked up and knew then that Lex and Magnil had pulled a fast one on her. He was in the house. She continued to search and then slyly looked at the cracked doorway. Going back into the kitchen, she poured another cup of coffee and headed into the storm shelter.

"Hello?" She looked around and flipped the light on with her elbow and saw Lex sprawled out on the cot that they had made up on. Where they had admitted their feelings to each other. Pushing the door closed, she put down the cups on the table and stared at him.

Lex eyed the ring on her finger and smiled. "Happy Birthday. You feel older?"

Chloe sauntered over to Lex and pushed him down into the bed that was not nearly as comfortable as the one in their bedroom but it would have to do. She didn't want to waste any time. Pulling the bottom part of the robe apart, she straddled him, still in his perfectly tailored pants. "A little more now," she giddily answered waving the ring on her hand. "But I want to hear it."

"Hear what?" Lex chuckled. He knew. Putting his hands behind his head, he stared at her and waited to see how long her patience would last. Her eyes got bigger with every second and Lex gave in when her hands started beating on his chest. Grabbing her wrists the next time she bared down on him, she fell on top of him, her head disappearing into the mattress.

Chloe lifted her body up enough to see Lex as his smile didn't break from his face. Running his hands through her hair, he touched her face pulled her into a well deserved kiss. Looking at her, he took a deep breath. This one was going to work; he wouldn't let it fail. "Chloe Sullivan, would you …"

"Yes!" she quietly screamed before plunging into a deep kiss before Lex pulled her out of it.

"Good, I'll get the contracts all prepared with Magnil and see you outside then." Chloe sat up and felt Lex tug out from underneath her and leave the room. Chloe sat in the middle of the bed and stared at the open door.

"What just happened here?" she said to herself as she waited for the punchline or him to return. She got up and grabbed the coffee cups, dropping them off in the kitchen before disappearing into the bedroom crushed. That wasn't the way it was supposed to happen at all.

Chloe stood in the middle of the bedroom and stared at the ring on her finger and spun it repeatedly wondering what the hell just happened. "Fuck, what did I do?" she whispered as she started to softly stomp. Her birthday, she had been awake for less than an hour and was already upset.

Lex watched the hissy fit play out from behind the closet door as he changed out of the suit and tie. Stifling a laugh, he covered his mouth and threw a shirt on, not bothering to button it. Easing out of the door without making it creak, he grabbed her from behind.

"What the hell?!" Chloe screamed as she heard the main door shut to the room. Lex gripped her tighter and nuzzled kisses into her neck.

Nipping at her earlobe, he felt Chloe's fight slow as she moaned at his touch. "Chloe, will you marry me?" He released her somewhat and felt her turn in his arms. "Be my wife."

Chloe looked at the grin on his face. He had planned the whole thing down to the servant closing the door. "That was a mean game."

"But it was funny," he snickered. Running his hand over her face, he pulled her lips to his and enticed her to part hers. He needed to taste her after so long. Pushing her toward the bed, he held her carefully and groaned when he felt her tongue run past his and scrape the top of his mouth. Deepening the kiss, he held her head in his hands and breathed in her scent. It was sweeter than he remembered.

With a disappointing moan, Chloe pulled from his kiss and stared up at Lex. "Yes," she said carefully. Lex balanced her and pushed her further on the bed as she slid her hands inside the undone shirt and let it float to the ground. "Welcome home."

Lex sat up from her and carefully pulled on the simple knot that held the robe together around her bare body. Chloe slid her arms out and laid on top of the light cotton. Lex closed his eyes and groaned, feeling her nails drag seductively down the front of his chest before locking in his waistband.

Chloe teased and felt for how many layers and was pleasantly surprised. "I guess I'm going to get my birthday present right now?" She smiled as Lex leaned over, taking one of her now hardened nipples in his mouth to stifle the groan from his throat as his pants hit the floor.

Climbing over her, he grazed his hand over her whole body as she stretched her arms over her head and cooed. He just wanted to touch her. Leaning over, he kissed her and buried his face into her neck, "I missed you."

"Me too." She whimpered as Lex grazed her with his fingers and could feel she was already wet. "Please Lex." She begged as she started to stroke him and felt him harden to her touch. It had been six weeks for him; the longest without a woman in his lifetime, but worth every minute.

"Chloe, slow honey," he moaned as she sped up her hand in reaction to his deeper circles he drew on her core. Lex sat up and watched her hand work on his length and groaned again as he leaned over to the nightstand.

"Lex." Lex turned and gazed at Chloe. "I want to feel you."

Lex looked nervously at Chloe. "You…We could…"

Chloe pulled him back into her, grazing her breasts against his chest as he continued to worry, "I know," she whispered as a smile appeared on her face. Lex gulped and took a deep breath as he kissed her again understanding she wanted it, for them.

Feeling her hands run down his back, he lined himself up with her wet core and slowly entered her. "Chloe," he groaned slowly as he pulled her legs over his shoulders and thrust deeper into her.

************

"I'm nervous Lex." Chloe grabbed the handles of the leather seat on the plane and shook her legs nervously. She watched out the window and saw the plane leave the ground heading back to the states. "What if people don't want me back?"

"Look, the Kents and Lana have been more than wonderful since you decided to show yourself. And although from what Clark has told me about his dad, I think him hurting you is a lot lower on the menu than him hurting me." Lex leaned over and handed her a glass of wine.

Chloe smiled and toasted, "To freaking out the entire city and breaking thousands of women's hearts." Lex laughed and clinked his glass to hers to toast. He watched as Chloe put it back on the tray and raised an eyebrow.

"Just in case." Lex squeezed her hand and smiled, downing her glass as she rolled her eyes.

The day after he had arrived home and the awkward stop in their first time back together, Chloe caught him on the laptop looking up methods that would supposedly be sure fire ways to get pregnant. She grinned behind him, out of his sight. Her hunch was correct, but she could hold out on him a little longer. Besides, Magnil was just as good at hiding Chloe's secrets from Lex as Lex's secrets from her.

The rest of the week, he had tried every trick he had found. Chloe was amused at the most, but drew the line at something involved her standing on her head. Lex later admitted he made that one up to see if she would fall for it because she was too much fun not to make fun of her.

The plane landed several hours later in the Metropolis and the two dipped into a limo. Chloe looked more and more uncomfortable the closer they got into town near where she knew his penthouse was. "It's going to be ok. We're going to settle in and then meet up with everyone for dinner tonight." Lex pulled Chloe into him and put his arm around her.

***********

Chloe opened to the door to a screaming and very jumpy Lana Lang. "Oh my God!!! I missed you so much!" The two girls almost danced around the floor together. Chloe tried to resist too much jumping but left the floor a couple of times just under Lana's aggressive moves.

"Clark." Lex shook his hand before blowing his mind and pulling him for a hug. Clark's eyes got bigger as Lana stopped to snicker at the very out of character move for Lex.

"I am so happy you decided to come back, even if it was…" Lana brushed her fingers over the hand of Chloe's that she held and stopped. Looking down and then over at Lex, she gasped. Staring back at Chloe, she covered her mouth and then at Lex again.

"She's speechless, but congrats man. I hope this one doesn't try to kill you." Clark laughed as he and Lex found the bar quickly. Lex twisted the top off the low key bottle and Clark eyed the strange new drink. "New taste?"

"Nah, kind of a new investment. This old sea bard on St. Thomas made this stuff in his garage. And I just promised him a little better factory and a lot better profits as long as he didn't drink everything he made." Lex handed Clark a glass and waited.

"Wow, that doesn't burn at all."

"Very mild, something about sugar cane and all that. Anyway, of all my smaller ventures, this one has taken off better than any other. I sent a bottle to all my subsidiary holding partners and word of mouth has exploded." Lex stopped and watched as the girls compared rings.

"She looks happy Lex." Clark stated and then looked at the strange warm grin on Lex's tanned face. "You look pretty…happy too."

Lex glanced over at Clark and felt one side of his face creep into a grin, "I am…happy."

"Dad!" Clark nodded to Lex to follow him over to his parents and try to be civil.

Lex turned and poured one more glass of the older gentleman and walked over to welcome the guests he was most concerned about. "Mr. Kent, glad that you and Mrs. Kent could make it." He handed Jonathon the drink and Clark nodded in approval. Slinging the drink back, Jonathon eyed Lex and grinned slightly.

"See your tastes have sweetened as much as what my son says your personality has. Sounds like Chloe has been a bit of good medicine." Jonathon complimented the young man on his choice of woman and drink. Hopefully the night wouldn't be totally shot.

"And then he just got up and walked away. I was just beside myself. But it was one of his stupid games, and he eventually spit out the actual question." Chloe rambled on about Lex's stupid proposal as Martha joined the girls and listened in. Looking over Chloe's ring, she glanced back in Lex's direction and was surprised by his choice, a simple pear shape not over two carats if her eye was right.

"So where will you be living?" Martha asked curiously.

"We've discussed it. He still of course is going to have to do a lot of travel, but he has been slowly working toward getting the villa set up for a permanent residence. It'll take several more months to get it up to speed, but I'm there and Magnil is great at what she does."

"Guess we're going to have to crash your summers then?" Lana questioned.

"Yeah, but there is plenty of space. He's adding on to the house as we speak." Chloe stated looking at the approving Martha. "By the way, I would love to have some support tomorrow if all of you could come."

"We'd be delighted to dear." Martha added, patting Chloe on the arm.

The six sat down for dinner in the main penthouse dining room as the kitchen staff sat things out on the table. "This all looks wonderful Lex. I still wish you would have let me cook." Martha said. "Still thank you."

Lex stood up and handed Chloe a glass, whispering to her privately before picking up his glass. "This year has been something out of the ordinary. There has been a lot of hurt," he choked as Chloe grabbed his loose hand. "And there's been a lot of love surround me like never before. And I wouldn't have made out positively without Chloe's phone call." He glanced over at her.

"Thanks to Jonathon and Martha for raising Clark the way you did. You taught him to steer clear of me in times that were questionable in my nature and although we rubbed shoulders several times Mr. Kent, you are the kind of husband I want to be."

"Clark and Lana," Lex paused and stopped as everyone held on the edge of their seats. Lex kept his glass in the air as Chloe eyed Lex's continuous pause. "See? Doesn't all that time anticipating something suck? My point is it's about time." Clark and Lana laughed as the Kents tried to contain their snickers at Lex's try at humor.

"And then you," he took Chloe hand. "You saved me." Lex stopped and suddenly couldn't breathe.

Chloe squeezed his hand back and finished, "we saved each other."

Gaining his composure, he looked over the other at the table that genuinely smiled in their direction. "Happy Thanksgiving."

TBC


	15. CHolidays Part 2 Lots of Little

Holidays Part 2 – Chapter 15

Lana held Chloe's gloved hand as they sat next to each other in the light snow that fell in the middle of Metropolis Luthorcorp Plaza. Lex sat on the other side of Chloe trying to concentrate on his breathing. Why he was nervous he had no idea. Maybe the fact that he was about to embark down a road he had never been on.

Lex looked out on the throngs of people that had gathered over the last several hours on the plaza lawn, only steps from the family plot where his father and mother were buried. People had been coming and going all day in between trips into the different stores that surrounded the plaza to catch the after Thanksgiving Day specials.

He laughed at Chloe when she had suggested such a crazy idea. He was simply going to call his PR agent and have something put in the paper about their engagement and be done with it. Chloe pointed out that it would simply eat at reporters who would not stop bothering them.

"We've got a good crowd. All the press is here." She whispered over to her fiancée. She could feel his grip on her hand stiffen.

"Perfect," Lex mumbled before turning to her. "Actually, everyone looks like they are having a decent time." Chloe looked at the people that stopped at the different booths.

The 1st Annual Luthorcorp Tree lighting seemed severely out of place for a Luthor. Lex had stopped celebrating Christmas long ago along with every other holiday. The tree that Chloe had picked out rivaled the one in New York and the shadow fell upon Lionel's grave for the added touch of 'screw you.'

The different booths that littered the plaza all were raising money for different charities by selling arts and crafts, food, and drinks while the corner of the plaza held loud screams of excitement from the bounce house and different games the local high school had for the kids. "They're having a great time," she reassured him.

Lex stood up as his assistant finished an announcement for everyone to gather around the tree. Taking Chloe's hand once more, he walked over to the podium and let go of her just behind him. "Welcome everyone to Luthorcorp Plaza for the day 1st Annual Tree Lighting. This is something new that we at Luthorcorp wanted to start as a way to give back to the community. Hearing from many of the different booths as I walked through earlier today, you have done a great service in supporting these worthy causes."

He looked back over his shoulder at Chloe as she stood next to the small table that was wired to the tree out in the middle of the plaza. She nodded as the rest of the crowd below him applauded politely and press flashbulbs and television cameras played the broadcast. "Now, to the employees of Luthorcorp. I want to thank you for another of successful year despite our obvious loss," Lex paused trying not to choke on his words. "And for that, I will be giving paid leave for the holidays of December 25 to January 1."

Chloe looked at Lex and covered her mouth in a chuckle hearing the gasps and whispers of his employees thinking that he had finally lost his mind and would quickly follow his father to the grave. Chloe moved up beside him and hugged his hand in hers. "I will personally be spending my holiday quietly at home with my fiancée, Chloe Sullivan."

He paused again seeing the throng of cameras, both professional and personal aim in their direction as Chloe blinked repeatedly from the lights that all turned in their direction. "You ok?" Lex whispered.

"As long as you're here." She hugged closer to him, which only caused more pictures to be snapped of the two. She secretly still couldn't believe that Lex had agreed to such a spectacle but knew it would make things easier in the long run. Press would look for him in Smallville and Metropolis; their home was still very much a secret.

"And now with the tree lighting." Lex turned and nodded at Chloe. Pressing the little button on the small table, the crowd oohed and aahed at the mixture of red, white, and green lights that lit the plaza. Seeing the cameras all turn to capture the tree, Lex grabbed Chloe's hand and signaled to Lana before dashing down the stairs, trying to avoid the throngs of people.

"Mr. Luthor!" Chloe looked over her shoulder and pushed on Lex's side. "Mr. Luthor, can we have a moment of Ms. Sullivan's time?"

"Faster!" Lex whispered in Chloe's ear as he led her and Lana into the limo waiting at the bottom of the stairs. As the car pulled away, his PR agent appeared at the base of the stairs.

"Mr. Luthor is sorry but he has several engagements planned for the evening and has made his public statements for the day. If you have any questions, you can call my office and I will relay any questions. However, the couple's official statement will appear in the Daily Planet tomorrow. Thank you." The PR agent disappeared into the Luthorcorp building behind locked doors.

Lex watched in the car as the crowd of reporters dispersed from the front of the building and looked at the people in the limo. "Well done Lex," Jonathon admitted. "Your father is rolling in his grave as we speak."

"Probably trying to turn over to shield his eyes from all those Christmas lights," Lex giggled as he placed a kiss on top of Chloe's head. She looked back behind her at the crowd in the plaza as they headed for the airport.

The next morning Lex and Chloe headed out of the mansion in Smallville for what she understood would be their last time there until the Lana and Clark's wedding. Lex watched Chloe sleep restlessly all night, tossing and turning more than she had since they had started sleeping together.

"Are you ok?" Lex whispered as he walked through the small cemetery holding her hand. She didn't answer, but just let go of his hand several yards before her father's grave.

"I want to be alone."

"I'll be in the car." Lex kissed her cheek and left her for the rest of the walk.

"Hey dad," Chloe whispered as she knelt down next to the grave she had put him in just a year earlier. "It's been a hell of a year. I wasn't going to come, but Lex thought…Lex and I are getting married and we're going to have a baby. I know dad; I can hear you. He's good to me." Chloe sat silently and just stared at the stone until tired over took her body. Walking back over to the car, Lex opened the door and pulled her into him in the seat.

"I want to go home." Lex kissed the top of her head and silently put the separator up between the driver and them.

***********

Chloe sat in front of the tree in the living room and moped. He was late. He had given the employees the week off, but she forgot to remind herself he would still work. Watching the slight wind blow through the tree, she marveled at the strange sensation of a warm suntan on her arms while looking at a Christmas tree.

She moved a couple of the presents around to make them look more centered as she hummed to herself. She was nervous. Lex had explained his reservations about Christmas from the beginning, and her gift was added anticipation. Now she wondered how he would handle it. She had flown back to St Thomas alone the weekend after Thanksgiving and had talked to him only twice a week for the last month.

"No shaking the boxes." She turned and ran across the room, flying into his arms. "Hey, I told you I would be home by Christmas." He kissed her.

"Yeah, but I didn't think you would wait until sundown on Christmas Day." She pulled from him and gazed into his eyes. "But I forgive you." He followed her pull over to beside the tree and sat down.

"I take it we're doing the present thing first." Lex laughed as he threw his overcoat on the back of the couch and turned back to pick something out for her. He had sent everything through Magnil and made sure Chloe didn't touch any of them. "This one first."

Chloe sat in between Lex's outstretched legs as she opened the small box. He had done a great deal not to spoil her, but the small boxes all under the tree worried her. She loved him, but she knew he understood her issue with the money. Ripping the bright paper off, she opened the box and then over her shoulder at Lex.

"Correction fluid. Funny."

"Open that one." Lex smirked as she put the bottle of Liquid Paper back under the tree. Ripping open the larger box, she stared at the antique typewriter. "I don't expect you to use it, maybe just use it as inspiration. It typed out the very first article at the Daily Planet."

Chloe ran her hand over the keys and the hugged Lex. "This is really…different. But you really listened. Ok, now for you." Chloe handed him a small box and he shook it as she pulled his tie off of him. "I couldn't decide what to get you."

Lex ripped the paper off the small box and opened it. Chloe had searched for something unique to Lex. It was hard to buy for the man who had everything, so she dug deeper. Lex pulled the chain out of the box and stared at it. "I did a little of that investigation thing I used to work on and found this at a pawn shop in Suicide Slums."

Lex held the small pendant in his hand and popped it open. Hitching his breath, he gulped and ran his hand over the worn picture of his mother when she couldn't have been older than a college student. "It was the first gift your mom got from your dad. She had sold it for money when she thought about leaving your father and that's where it sat. I meant to replace the pic…"

"No, it's unbelievable." Lex wrapped his hand around the necklace and suddenly disappeared from the room. Chloe sat in front of the tree and waited for him to return but he didn't. When she got up and headed for the door, Charles cut her off.

"Charles, please move."

"Ma'am, Lex has requested a few minutes alone." Chloe backed up and saw Magnil and stared at the floor concerned. Magnil came in and walked Chloe over to the couch and sat down next to her.

"I thought it would make him happy. I thought he would like it." Chloe cried into Magnil's arms as Magnil motioned for Charles and Carmen to go. "I should have just gotten him something lame like the rest of his women probably bought him."

"Chloe, I'm sure he really loves the gift, but it's just emotional to him. I mean I remember the amount of work it took for you to find that and he probably realizes that and is overwhelmed." Magnil continued to hold Chloe in her arms, smiling quietly to herself as Charles walked back by the door. "Go now. Charles says things are clear."

Chloe looked over at Magnil and walked out of the living room in search of her fiancée. "Lex?" she called softly as she walked through the house to the main entrance, finding a trail of the local flowers out to the beach trail. "Lex?"

Lex watched her from behind a tree and appeared behind her, wrapping his arms around her. "What the hell?" Chloe cried as she turned to him. "I thought you were upset with me and had decided to leave." She stopped and looked at his clothes and then pulled the gold chain out from under his shirt.

"No," Lex kissed her quickly on the lips. "But I have one more surprise, but thank you." He leaned in and hugged her as she started to cry. "You are so special to me and this just proves why I fell in love with you. Now, we have to hurry."

Chloe took his hand and followed him down the beach to a small bonfire and saw other people waiting around the fire. Chloe blinked through the small smoke that came up from the bonfire. Chloe turned around and looked up at Lex. "What's going on?"

Lex looked over Chloe's shoulder and pulled her into him. "Marry me." Chloe looked at the expression on Lex's face and then at the group of people around the fire. Her mouth dropped and she stared at Lex in disbelief.

Lots of Little Surprises – Chapter 16

"Right now?" Chloe stuttered. Her question caused Lex to drop his hands. "Lex, seriously? Did you get hit in the head with a coconut or something?"

Running his hands up and down her shoulders, he smirked at her. "No, but I realized that I don't want to spend one more day without you and I together, even when we're apart." Chloe tilted her head and ran her hands up and down his chest in response. Something happened in the last few minutes since she gave him her gift that made him lose his mind.

Reaching up and touching his face, she broke her confusing look and pressed her lips to his. "Lex, I'm not ever going to be apart from you. But I have reservations about mixing Christmas and my wedding date. Besides, it's dark and I'd like a few pictures of our wedding as would the press I'm sure. Can't we just enjoy the night?"

Lex held her face in both hands and saw her tilted smile he remembered from when she first told him that he would protect her and let out a laugh. "You were the one that said let loose."

"Throwing a surprise wedding on Christmas is a little too much honey." Lex leaned in and grazed her lips before Chloe pulled away. "Besides, there are people here and I would love to know who." Chloe ran her hand along his and curled her fingers into it before heading down the beach. "Anyway, who's ordained in this crowd?" she asked as she looked at her friends that he had obviously flown in for the holiday.

"Guilty," Don waved as he turned with a beer in one hand and Lex's scotch in the other. Chloe let out a big laugh as she and Lana hugged barefoot in the sand.

***********

With Luthorcorp plants shut down for the first time ever over the holidays, Chloe would enjoy waking up every morning again with Lex's legs twisted up into hers. The nights had become cooler and the shutters closed, but she still felt comfort with his bare back against her chest.

This morning was different. She rubbed her eyes as she watched Lana mill through her clothes that she had brought on the trip. She stared at the slow ceiling fan and suddenly felt a twinge of nausea. Not today. Any day but today.

"Hey Lana? Could you go tell Carmen to bring me something to eat? I think I'm getting nervous knots."

"Sure," she smiled as she plodded out of the room in her tank and pajama pants. Chloe had been given specific instructions to not be walking around the villa before the ceremony later in the day. She told Lex he was being insane with the old traditions; he reminded her how the other times they had been not followed and how well things worked out.

"She gave me this." Lana sat the tray of coffee and pastry down on the table. "Are you ok? You look a little off color."

"I'm just nervous," Chloe reassured Lana as Lana pulled the simple white cotton dress out for the beach wedding that Chloe finally gave into. But she had won the battle over the name. Chloe Sullivan-Luthor. So, she thought to herself, it wasn't much of a battle since they played heads or tails.

"Nerves get the best of us." Martha interjected in the conversation entering the girls' room and pouring a coffee for herself. "I remember I nearly left for the restroom halfway down the aisle when Jonathon and I got married."

"You? I hardly picture the model of decorum vomiting in the middle of her wedding." Chloe and Martha laughed lightly as if they were the best of friends.

"I can't believe that you are beating me and Clark down the aisle." Lana hugged Chloe and looked at the ring on her hand. "Lex really loves you, and not anything like his other two weddings. This one looks like it's going to take. I think whatever you did to get Lex here has been really something good for him. He's like he was when we all first met."

"I wouldn't call him mellow, but he definitely is a new person." A knock caused the two girls to turn their heads and see Magnil poke her head in.

"Hey, I found this one wandering around the airport about an hour ago. Make sure she changes into something appropriate. A woman in a pant suit and a ponytail slid in the doorway as Chloe nearly flew over the chair. "LOIS!"

"Whoa cous!" Lois screamed as Chloe launched herself into Lois' arms. "You know if you hadn't cut off contact with everyone, you probably wouldn't miss us so much."

"I know, but I had to find myself."

"And a man apparently. How ironic it was someone right under your nose and as crooked as the coral that grows here." Chloe glared at Lois' last comment. "Fine, I'll stop. Besides, I already ran into the lucky bastard and told him I'll kill him if he hurts you. He smiled at me and then hugged me. You give him some kind of voodoo potion or something?"

"He's just blissfully in love," Lana interjected as Lois handed Chloe a copy of the latest Daily Planet. "Go change Lois."

Chloe read the headline and covered her mouth, trying not to laugh. 'Third Time's a Charm Luthor Quoted.' His PR agent was having a field day with the press feeding them bits and pieces with his and Chloe's permission. Chloe read the byline and saw that Lex had even given in to giving Lois the reporter tag. Her fate at the Daily Planet was sealed without Lex having to buy anyone off.

On the other side of the villa, Charles pushed the door open and saw three men laying in loungers with bottles strewn about. He shook his head and realized that as much giggling that came the night before from the girls room, the loud music from the men's room was what he should have worried about.

"Sir, the women are all up." Lex came around the corner of the closet and smiled. "Oh, I guess you should wake up the others. Sir, is that the officiator with a bottle in each hand?" Lex nodded as Charles gently removed the bottles from the man's grip.

"Lex, we are so sorry we all fell asleep on your balcony. How exactly do you convince yourself to come back to Kansas when you wake up to this every morning?" Clark asked as he stretched and tried to shake himself awake.

"It gets harder every day. I'm still working on modifications to this place to make it meeting worthy. See, the mansion in Smallville was basically a place to live, but I went into Metropolis for business. This is a little more complicated."

"But Chloe won't budge." Lex shook his head and continued throwing out different shirts on the bed. Jonathon looked over the bed covered in shirts and pointed one out silently.

"It kind of came with the marriage talk. Her name and that we live here. Besides, I have had a much easier time with security here since we're surrounded by water."

"Except for a little blonde that broke in a few months ago," Jonathon interjected before laughing. Lex rolled his eyes and admitted that wasn't his brightest of moments.

The two men had almost made it to the friends stage. Clark had talked seriously with his dad about Lex's change, and Jonathon was slowly seeing the difference that Clark's best friend was making on the man. He was more mature, more collected, and yet easier going. Chloe had done some amazing work on him.

***********

Chloe leaned against the railing on the lanai overlooking the lights of St. Thomas watching the fireworks. With every boom, she could feel the time ticking for Lex to leave again. They had discussed it and planned it out thoughtfully together, which she was happy about. But separation from him for another six weeks at least was going to be nearly impossible on her sanity.

The wedding had gone off without a hitch except for the one small helicopter from a newspaper rag she was sure that buzzed them. But her fear of throwing up or him backing out of his own insane idea didn't occur. It had been low key with only those few invited and Don had sobered up in time to officiate, causing Lex not to kill him.

Chloe smiled to herself remembering the bear hug that Jonathon finally gave Lex at the end of the ceremony. Things were definitely different in the Luthor household now. Chloe stared down at her ring and spun it around, her engagement ring of only a few weeks old tucked carefully away in a safe at her request.

"Where are you?" Lex wrapped his arms around his wife's and nuzzled his face into her neck before kissing lightly from her ear to shoulder. The last week had been something he couldn't forget. He was comfortable here like no where before. Chloe made him that way, his wife. He closed his eyes and sighed into her neck whenever he thought of that word.

"London," she whispered, closing her eyes to his touch. She loved his touch. She saw him in action and his anger in his early years but had not seen that part of him in so long she wondered if it really existed anymore.

"I have to go. We talked about this."

"I know. It's just hard." Sliding one of his hands into hers, he pulled her back into the living room and looked around. The staff was out for the evening together. Lex had insisted that they all go enjoy the New Year's party on the other island. Magnil suggested it had nothing to do with giving them the night off. "Let's change the subject," he murmured into her ear as he slipped his fingers in one of the ties on her top and it fell, revealing her now heaving chest.

Chloe popped a glare in his direction before grabbing him his crotch, feeling that him leaving wasn't the only thing that was hard. Lex's eyes met hers and he saw her inching up to him for a kiss. Slipping out of her grip, he smirked quickly and walked out of the room.

Chloe pulled up her top and followed him out the door to see him no where in the hall. "Ohh, you wanna play?" She retied her top and headed down the hall, looking in each room as she passed. Passing the half open door of the bedroom, she was sure he wasn't that dense and kept walking. "Shit!" she screamed as he threw her over his shoulder and vaulted her onto the bed, quickly straddling her with his body.

"Yeah, I want to play," Lex grunted as he yanked on the tie to her top again before burying his face in her chest, holding her hands down while she giggled at the raspberries he blew on her chest.

*************

Chloe walked into the conference room the next morning and saw her husband well recovered from their late night and dressed to leave. "Good morning. Did you ever sleep?"

"Sleep on the plane. How are you this morning?" He said without looking up from the computer and files he was reading through. Chloe refilled his coffee cup and sat across the table from him.

Lex had even surprised himself by the openness of their relationship. He had never left anything out on the desk except for his business associates and even then, things were well guarded. But Chloe had changed too. Her interviews with long time islanders and snow birds were not exactly the riveting journalism she had done before, but somehow she stayed busy. Lex didn't ask because if she was unhappy, she told him so.

"Good. I have to work this afternoon after you leave. The winter cruise ship season is in full swing. Do you mind if I use the helicopter this evening to get home. Don needs me longer than the ferry is running."

Lex stopped and looked up from his work. "Are you seriously asking me if you have to have my permission to call Daryl to get a ride home?" Lex pushed his chair out from behind the desk and pulled Chloe down on his lap. "You're my wife. I am now officially married longer than I have been previously, and I plan to make it truly until death do us part. Now, I will call Daryl and tell him to expect you to call him with your schedule." Lex placed kisses up and down her back and pushed her off his lap slightly, "but I have something else to handle for you. Hang on."

Chloe sat back in the chair next to Lex and looked at the pile of papers in front of Lex. It wasn't a Luthorcorp holding contract. "Lex?"

"Magnil, we need to go over the meeting with the Ship Bard production numbers where Chloe knows how to handle the meeting with Rey." Chloe's mouth dropped and watched Lex pile up several folders and slide another folder in front of her as Magnil sat on the other side of them.

"What?"

"I couldn't be here for the meeting with the beverage commission and Rey is not exactly the picture of business, so Magnil will go over the finer points with you. But I want you to run the meeting in my place." Chloe stared at her husband as if he had lost his mind. Reaching across the table, Lex grabbed Chloe's hand in his and smiled. "You'll do fine. It's just a recertification meeting. I trust you."

And that was it. Lex left later that afternoon to catch a late plane to London for the first official day of business in Luthorcorp. Papers all over the world had reported the unprecedented move that irritated some underling companies but impressed the stockholders. A Luthor had actually developed a heart and the blonde woman with the sharp intellect had caused the fuss in six months time.

*************

January flew by as Chloe juggled working at the bar with being busier with the small newspaper. The editor recently got wind of her work in the Daily Planet and gave her harder subjects to tackle. Not harder for her, but Chloe pictured it as a small step up. She was happy that no one on the islands cared what her last name entailed.

She read the other newspapers every morning keeping tabs on her husband's antics. The tabloids had become the most difficult to deal with from so far away. Chloe spent a morning picking up parts of one particular tabloid she threw over the railing after a picture appeared of Lex and another distinct brunette woman coming out of a restaurant together. Magnil had caught her fit and called Lex immediately.

The woman appeared no later than fifteen minutes later on the webcam with Lex. She was decidedly older than the smudged tabloid picture suggested and happily married with grandkids. Lex explained the business luncheon and that Chloe could just call him about the rest of her insecurities. Satisfied with the answer, she turned off the computer and leaned back in the chair.

"Magnil, how mad do you think Lex is going to be about you know." Magnil looked over at Chloe. She glowed more each day and recently had done some new wardrobe shopping that hopefully would last the duration. Besides her out of control fits dealing with the tabloid fodder, Chloe had been quite calm throughout her ordeal.

"I remember when you two first got together you made him promise no schemes or games, and I guess I'm on the fence. It was something you probably should have told him about, especially since he's been asking lately."

"You think it will change things?"

"For the better dear. Why?"

"I have an idea." Chloe motioned for Magnil to follow her down the hall.

A week later Lex sat at his desk in Metropolis depressed. Valentine's Day was a fabricated holiday but he was still missing the first one with Chloe. He had missed so much as he went back through all the time they had been apart. They talked nearly everyday but it wasn't enough anymore. Sending her roses was lame, but he didn't know what else he could do. He had to think before scheduling meetings from now on.

Opening his email, he filtered out the junk and looked at the address that looked familiar. Shaking his head, he wondered what possessed her to write him instead of just calling. Opening the email, he began to read.

Lex,

Good morning honey and Happy Valentine's Day.

I know you have a ton of meetings today, which

I don't exactly understand what possessed you.

Oh, nice move with Chris – I should be pissed at

you, but he seems to be doing well on the ocean.

I wanted to let you know that I had to quit the

bar last week. Don was upset but he understood.

Now, I don't want you to get upset, but it's just

I've been getting more tired and it's causing a

strain to keep up there and the paper. Anyway,

I'm sending you this picture hoping it might get

you to rethink your schedule for next week and

pencil in an appointment for me.

Love, Chloe

Lex reread the cryptic message and wondered what in the world the woman was talking about. Besides her obviously finding out about Chris, Lex wondered about the rest of the email. Chloe could write so eloquently and then slice up words to where no one could decipher anything from them. And she didn't like his games he thought to himself. She played plenty herself. Clicking on the attachment, he waited for the picture to download. Staring at it, a smile and giggle escaped his lips.

.com/albums/e...ch_

Picking up the phone, he spoke almost giddy, "Yeah, I need to you to clear my schedule for the rest of the week and next. I'm going home."

TBC


	16. Pink or Blue

Pink or Blue – Chapter 17

Lex entered the front gates of the villa late in the evening as Charles picked up his bags and headed down the corridor with them. "Magnil, I need to see you in the office."

Magnil turned from her work at the computer in the living room and saw what looked like her very disgruntled employer. Shutting the laptop, she covered her mouth in slight concern of Lex's reaction to Chloe's email. She stopped Carmen on the way out of the room, "How does he seem?"

Carmen shrugged, "He asked for a beer." Magnil looked down and took the beer from Carmen's hand and walked through the corridor into the new private office complex that Lex had the contractors finish while he had been away. The office opened to the gardens where the sunlight wouldn't be too harsh during the day and he could still work.

Magnil stopped in the doorway, taking a breath, waiting for the backlash of helping Chloe hide her secret until she wanted to tell him. The time had never been right Chloe had said. He was either working, they were with others, or apart. But she had liked Chloe's idea from the start. And it had gotten her husband to come home.

She watched Lex sit at the computer and stare at what she could only think was the only picture he had of her in that condition. "Carmen said you wanted a beer. A little different than your norm?"

Lex looked over the computer screen and took the beer from her without saying anything. Magnil thought she might be out of the woods. "Why didn't she tell me?"

"She wanted to but the timing was always wrong." Magnil sat down across from his desk. "D drive, beach pics, password is valentine." Lex clicked several things before typing in the password and saw the screen fill with pictures of Chloe on the beach with a small swollen belly. Lex cocked his head to one side and couldn't wipe the wider and wider smile off his face.

"How did you two hide it from me?" Lex was more curious than anything. He hadn't heard anything from Chloe about her even missing her month, so he had dropped it until they could get together again.

"A friend of mine is a doctor on St. Croix. We have been paying him out of an account that is still in Chloe's name. Mr. Luthor, she wanted it this way – I honestly didn't know why, but all the answers you need to get are not from me." Magnil got up from her seat as Lex continued to look at the pictures of Chloe on the screen.

Hearing him gasp, she turned around to see Lex sigh as he adjusted in his seat. 'Must have gotten to the naked one of her on the lounger,' she silently laughed as she left.

Lex shut the computer and started down the hall. He knew it was late, but he couldn't help it. Pulling his clothes off, he crawled into the bed next to Chloe and ran his hand down her chest and over her slightly enlarged belly and smiled. "Hey daddy," he heard her whisper as her hand covered his. He closed his eyes and felt Chloe's hand drift to her other side as he felt something slightly punch his palm. "He's a night owl like his daddy."

Chloe rolled over and Lex could see the slight hump in the sheets and felt his stomach coil in a nervous way, but unlike any feeling he had ever felt. "He's kicking?" Lex stopped. "He?"

Chloe turned her head to face Lex as she pressed Lex's hand further into her belly, letting him continue to massage his palm next to his unborn's soccer leg. "We're going to have a son. I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner. It wasn't planned like this on purpose. I just…"

"But this isn't from November," Lex figured from her size she had kept the secret a lot longer. "Is he healthy?"

Chloe leaned in kissed Lex's lips, closing her eyes at his touch she had missed for the last six weeks again. "He's perfectly healthy. The doctor is wonderful. And HE is from September. I'm due in June." She giggled as Lex pulled himself up to look over her. She was gorgeous. He had imagined that he would long since be alone for the rest of his life and then she happened less than a year ago. Running his hand over her belly and up her breast, she leaned over and he met her lips before burying his face in her unusually long hair.

"Our first night together," he whispered in her ear. He watched Chloe's eyes wince as he felt the small jab on her side.

"I just blame the hurricane. It could have been any one of those times. You sort of forgot to stock the storm shelter with something." Lex pulled away and laughed at her subtle humor and then fell back into the pillows with her. "So, how long before the next trip?"

Lex pulled her closer to his side and nuzzled into the crook of her neck. "What next trip?" Chloe turned and stared at him. "I have some priorities I need to work on." He kissed her once more and settled back next to her, finally falling asleep with his hand still firmly against her belly. Chloe smiled as she felt his breathing even out. He was home to stay.

**********

Chloe stood in the middle of the new room with her hands on her hips. Her back ached and her feet were starting to swell. The feeling was incredibly uncomfortable but not unwelcome. It was worth it. She looked at the small wall clock, with dolphins on the background, and noted the time. The meeting was still in session.

Things had changed in the household since her announcement to Lex. The latest meeting was with an oil conglomerate whose executives seemed more than happy to stay at the resort at the other end of the island and take the limo to the conference room each morning. This was the last day of the meeting, and Lex was pleased with the progress.

He seemed most pleased that he could easily have the men for a meeting and then take an evening sail with the executives and their wives. Chloe hadn't been on the sail though. In her state, she couldn't handle the waves. Lex apologized profusely for her absence, which led to the wives staying behind the night before with her to play cards.

They had adjusted well to each other it seemed. Lex was more laid back than ever before and yet turning more profits, and job satisfaction at Luthorcorp had finally landed the company on the top 10 best places to work. It was a dramatic change from five years previous when people feared working there.

From Chloe's perspective, she and Lex had a long talk about her standing as a Luthor in society. He wanted her to be different than his father had treated his mother in relation to business. Even with her more visible bump, Chloe conducted tours of the islands for the wives as the men conducted business. In return, Lex got more clients and Chloe received care packages for the future bundle in thanks. It was a good arrangement.

A knock on the door interrupted her from her thoughts. She turned and saw Lex still in his business slacks and dark shirt. He looked terribly uncomfortable but crossed his arms with a smirk on his face. "Good news?"

"We'll see soon enough. The committee is considering the findings on the synthetic oil product and if it'll make a difference in the production costs. Looks good so far. How's the room coming along?" Lex shoved his hands in his pockets and walked around the room that he and she had argued over. It had been their first real argument since they got together. He wanted classic; she wanted fun. They met in the middle.

The paint was a marble mix of blues that complemented the one wall Chloe had an artist in St. Thomas paint an underwater scene on. Stuffed animals hung from a fishing net across one corner and the cream colored furniture contrasted with the darker blue carpet. Lex shook his head when the artist finished the wall and laughed thinking his son would wake up one day and think he was drowning at the bottom of the ocean. But he admitted it was tastefully done.

"It's done except for the addition of the clothes and of course the letters above the crib." Chloe ran her hand along her belly and winced.

"Getting excited?" Lex asked with a gentle grin on his face.

"Hungry, as is mom." Chloe walked over to the door and ran her hand along Lex's waist, taking his hand in hers. Lex followed her into the kitchen and watched as she put together the most awful looking sandwich and wondered how she could possibly think it was edible.

**************

"I feel like a big pink balloon," she commented in the mirror as she smoothed the bridesmaid dress out over her belly. Lifting her foot slightly, she eyed the easygoing shoes that Lana had picked out for her instead of the high heels that the other women wore. "Are you sure I have to get up there like this?"

"You look radiant. You will probably steal my thunder today." Chloe looked over at Lana and saw her sitting on the bed holding a tissue. She watched as Lana's face slid from joking to nervous. "You think I'm making a mistake?" Chloe knew that Clark had told her his secret several weeks earlier and she had been having a hard time adjusting to it. Clark, however, didn't make it public knowledge that Chloe knew anything.

Chloe moved over to the bed and sat next to Lana. "I can tell you from first hand experience that the men we marry both have their quirks and I sometimes wonder how I get past some of Lex's. But the bottom line is that I love him, for that better or worse. You will have difficulties and you will fight, but you are going to be together. He will need to lean on you and you on him. But if you don't think you can support him, you have to tell him before he stands up in front of those people out there."

Lana stared at Chloe and then looked her belly. She had really grown up in the last year. She wanted to have her strength. She gasped at the knock at the door before it opened. "Ladies, five minutes." Chloe looked up and smiled at her husband. Lex saw the look on Lana's face and nodded to Chloe to wait outside.

Moving over to her, he removed the tissue from her hand. "Look up," he ordered quietly as he carefully rounded the one tear hanging from her bottom lid. Taking her hand in his, he squeezed it gently. "You look beautiful. Clark is floating I swear. You are going to make him so happy." Lex stood up and held out his arm. Lana took a deep breath and took it. "Oh, there's been a slight change in plans though."

Lex led Lana out to the main corridor of the mansion and turned the corner. "Henry." She stammered. "Lex, how did you?"

"I'm the something old," he tried to joke as he took his daughter's arm. Lex glanced over at Chloe and carefully helped her down the stairs.

"I'm so glad we aren't living in this house. I would have to live in the living room." Lex chuckled as the music for the wedding began.

***********

Chloe sat out in the sun under the umbrella that Charles had installed at Lex's request. April rolled around and saw Lex back and forth out of the country with clients that couldn't meet in the islands. Chloe took his week here and there trips with as much dignity as she could. Mood swings had kicked in after Lana and Clark left from their honeymoon and Chloe still couldn't get past her feelings of loneliness when Lex left right behind them.

She and Lex fought more about stupid things than she would have pictured months before. He said it was her mood swings; she blamed his career. Finally, the night before he left last week, she told him.

"I want you here for the baby's first year," she flatly stated across the plainly set dinner table that already had a highchair waiting in the corner of the room. "No trips."

Lex sighed where Chloe could barely catch the mild irritation from him. "You know that may not be possible." He looked up and saw her face as she shoved her plate away. It was going to be one of those conversations. They became more frequent the closer to the due date.

"I wasn't really asking you. It'll be your son's first year. He's going to need both of his parents. I'm not just going to hire some random nanny or expect that Magnil follow me around all day and night while you are off attending hoity toity parties to make your company look good!" Chloe pushed her chair back and pulled herself up from the table, heading for the door.

"Chloe," Lex dropped half pleading. "This is not fair. You know that I'm doing this for us." He pushed his chair back and followed her down the hall. He caught her against the corridor wall and tried to take her hand.

"Not really in the mood right now," Chloe pulled her hand from his help. She continued into their bedroom, slamming the door just to hear Lex catch it with his arm. She turned around and glared at him. "For us? You are worth over several, in the teens I'm suspecting, billion dollars. Where do you draw the line that it's enough for us to live on? Are you planning on purchasing the moon because as far as I know, it's not for sale and I don't want it!"

"Chloe, I have cut the meetings down as much as I can. Clients know when you are due. Board members are salivating at the chance to finally step in and take my place for many things. The press is ready to have a field day when the newest Luthor arrives, but there are some things that can't be regulated."

Lex stood in the middle of the room and watched as Chloe balanced on the balls of her feet while holding under her belly. He was seriously reconsidering the meeting the next week; justifying a quarter of a billion dollars to her at this point was going to be next to difficult.

"Have some secret project that no one can know about? Thought you were past that."

"No," Lex dropped sarcastically, "It's the Kitiana merger and you know that."

"You're turning into your father," Chloe lowered her voice as she turned away from Lex. "And I refuse to become Lillian."

Lex stared at the back of Chloe's head as she gripped the edge of the chaise lounge in the bedroom. He was stunned into silence. He rubbed his hand across the back of his neck as if he could wipe the insult away. They had talked in detail about his parents since she and he had married. The arguments about his time away had always fixed themselves. Closing his eyes, he knew right at that moment his father would have hit his mother.

And he was gone. Chloe remembered it took him only ten minutes of dead silence to pack his bags. He said he would call; Chloe knew it would be Magnil he would talk to before to find out Chloe's mood. Now a week passed and she sat, her pale beige sundress almost transparent from the incoming waves over the bottom of the dress. She hadn't spoken to Magnil or Lex for two days, keeping only with Carmen to bring her food and drink.

Chloe took a sip of the seltzer water to settle her stomach but it wasn't working this time. Pains came and went as she sat in the sun. Picking up the phone, she dialed the house. "Hey Carmen, I need some help getting back up to the house. I'm having some cramps."

Carmen appeared with Magnil, and Chloe teetered into both of their grips. "Chloe?" Magnil sensed the tension in her face.

"It's just cramps. I just need to get out of the sun," Chloe fought out the words before buckling over slightly and moaning.

"Carmen, take the phone and call Charles. Have him ready Daryl." Magnil looked at her watch and then Carmen as the woman ran up the side of the hill toward the house. Chloe eyed her from the side before grabbing her belly and gasping. "Honey, these are what we call contractions."

"No, I have 5 weeks left," Chloe gasped out as she struggled through what now could be easily called a contraction. Pain hadn't made its way through her body like that in as long as she could remember. Even falling out of the mansion window hadn't hurt as bad. Mansion. Lex. "Lex…"

"Charles is making calls as we speak."

"But I can't have it before…" Chloe stopped short of finishing the sentence as she lowered herself to her knees.

"You have to keep walking. The contraction will be over in a few seconds." Magnil pulled on Chloe's arm as Chloe concentrated on breathing through it like the coach had taught her and Lex.

The son of a bitch better fucking make his son's birth on time, she thought as she tried to mentally count the hours between Metropolis and St Thomas. "Fuck you, Lex Luthor," she grumbled as the contraction ended.

"I think he already did that dear," Magnil tried to joke as they made it to the top of the stairs.

*************

Lex sat at the desk in the Luthorcorp building and shifted papers back and forth. Last Friday had been the worst day of his life. Chloe had called him Lionel. Deep down, he tried to convince himself that it was just the hormones talking but he wasn't sure.

He tried desperately to get out of traveling. The board had actually been very helpful, understanding how it is with pregnant wives. He had never pictured the men on his board as friends. His father would have rolled in his grave knowing the men would go to dinner and compare month by month pregnancies and explain to Lex how to handle things.

Lex stared at the picture that Chloe had taken a couple weeks earlier of her in her glory. She seemed to like the freeing state of naked when she was on the beach and Lex never complained. The picture was tastefully done with the towel only wrapped in places that still exposed her belly. A painful twinge of a smile showed as he ran his hands along it.

"Lex? How about lunch? You secretary said you hadn't eaten anything today," Robert, his senior board member, had watched him since he was in his teen years. He had taken his father's death the hardest but now saw that Lex was trying to do right by the company.

"I could go. Conference detail meeting is not for a couple of hours." Lex picked up his coat and walked out of the office, not concerned if the work got done or not.

********

"Lex," Robert put his fork down and leaned back in his seat, "I know your father ruled the company with an iron fist. Chloe has been wonderful for you regardless of her incredible minor interruptions back in high school." Robert watched as Lex's face tensed. "I've known you half your life Lex; what's going on?"

Lex nodded, "Not important."

"Lex, you need more people to talk to besides your wife. And your dad's crap about emotion is for the weak is just that. Crap." Lex looked at Robert cross his arms and wait.

"Chloe and I had a fight. She compared me to my dad."

"Ouch, and what happened?" Robert was curious.

"I packed and left. I had the Kitiana merger," Lex almost seemed to mumble as he sat back in the hidden booth of the restaurant.

"Lex, that was three days ago. Why are you still here? We have talked about this. The board members and I have it. International contracts are Paul and my expertise. No offense, but I would fire you if I could."

Lex's head popped up when the Robert said he would fire him. "Just a couple more…hang on," Lex pulled his phone out of his pocket. "Luthor."

Robert watched as Lex's businesslike exterior started to crumble and the color from his face left him. He followed Lex out of the restaurant after paying for them. Quickly catching up to his boss, he followed him into the Luthorcorp building and waited in the elevator. He listened to the other half of the conversation in concern.

Robert walked back to his office and pulled out the contract that he and Paul had their lawyers draw up a few months earlier. Blowing off the secretary, Robert marched back into Lex's office and saw him furiously signing through work related papers. Putting his hand in the middle of one of them, he looked down at Lex. "Go home. She's in labor."

Lex didn't look up; he had to get it done. She just started contractions; he had some time. He mentally calculated the hours to get home and was sure he would make it. Robert slammed the document down on the desk. "Lex, sign it and get the hell out of here. You can have it all back when you're ready to come back. This is Luthorcorp; we wouldn't dupe you but you need to go home."

Lex stared at the contract that Robert threw in front of him. Skimming it, the contract turned over all major holdings to Robert's control. The one man that Lex had trusted, his father had hated, but kept because his business sense anywhere else would have been a threat. He looked up at Robert; he had 3 kids and 7 grandchildren. He understood. Picking up the pen, he signed it and handed it back to Robert.

"Now, go home. And wish her well for me."

*************

"I'm looking for Chloe," Lex stammered trying to find the words. He had practically worn a place in the carpet on the plane from the pacing. He had never been so nervous.

"Mr. Luthor," the nurse called before meeting up with him. "Your wife came in about 9 hours ago. The doctor was able to stop the contractions for the first several hours, but the last two she has not responded to medication."

Lex swallowed harder as the nurse took the stairs in two's. "How is she?"

"She kept saying that she isn't going to have the baby until you arrive." The nurse stopped Lex at the top of the stairs. "Her contractions were becoming more regular but right before you arrived, the doctor pulled her for surgery. There's been some complications."

TBC


	17. Paradise

Paradise - Chapter 18

Lex stared at the nurse and tried not to lose his composure, "Complications?" He followed the nurse down the hall as quickly as she was walking and listened.

"She's at 35 weeks. While that is considered a premature infant, most survive and have few problems once out of the hospital." The nurse stopped in the waiting area outside of double doors that said no admittance. "However, during her beginning labor, the doctor found an umbilical cord prolapse occurred. Basically the cord had worked its way between her cervix and the baby, cutting off the labor canal. The heartrate plummeted. So, she's in surgery right now."

Lex stopped and stared at the double doors. "Can I be there?"

The nurse sighed and shook her head. "She's already been prepped and would not have time to prep you. It's a strenuous situation. I promise to come get you as soon as possible." The nurse showed Lex to a small room with a number on it. "These are private waiting rooms for the fathers. I will call on that phone there."

Lex watched as the double doors flew open as he paced. He stared at the magazines on the table and suddenly realized that all the pictures of her pregnant and the baby's room were just the tip. Dawning on him, he was going to be a father.

Lex sat on the uncomfortable vinyl couch and filed through one of the brochures. 'How is my Child Different, a handbook for Preemie Parents.' As he read, his eyes filled with moisture at the different layers of problems that could occur.

Could occur? His wife was in surgery; he hadn't been there in time to be with her. The words on the page and the pictures didn't help, even if they were painted as rosy as possible. The idea of his child spending time in the hospital scared him. It would be something that he ultimately couldn't control.

The paragraphs on their lack of mental development later in life made him rub his head in agony. He didn't want his father's voice in his head saying he was a Luthor and Luthor children wouldn't have problems. He himself had problems for the longest time. He was treated sadly because of them even before he lost his hair. Illness had been a sign of weakness.

Lex threw the pamphlet back on the table and leaned his head against the wall, closing his eyes. Letting out a long sigh, he heard a familiar voice enter the waiting room.

"My grandson was 32 weeks. It's hard to picture what might be coming." Lex peered over across the small room and tried not to show his utter excitement to see someone familiar. "Magnil is with her Lex. And the nurse will come get you when she can."

"Don, I've been a selfish prick and this is all my fault."

"First, everyone that is on the front of TIME magazine for business is a selfish prick and most can't make a family work if they were given a manual. Second, you did not cause Chloe's distress. Preemies are common in younger age women."

Lex leaned forward and took the small water that Don offered him. "What if…"

"No what ifs. Chloe will be fine. Your son is going to be fine. And anything else, you have a network of friends here that you probably haven't had in a long time. Although, your name is pretty much mud as far as your wife's ranting in labor."

Lex chuckled and sat back against he couch, nursing his water. He wanted something stronger, but alcohol was no longer on the menu since Chloe had announced she was breastfeeding. Fortunately, sleeping pills for him were still allowed in their agreement.

Lex sat and flipped through another magazine made for new dads and stared at the pictures of the happy ones carrying their kids around on their shoulders. He grimaced trying to remember when that had ever occurred with him and Lionel. No memory could be recollected.

When Chloe had first started decorating, he wanted the books of substance in the room. Children shouldn't have ideas of fairytales floating uselessly in their brain. Chloe resisted his raised voice and bought books of poetry and pop up books, and soft books and only one book at real life, Rich Dad, Poor Dad. Lex had laughed at her but found it actually more interesting than anything his father ever told him.

Lex pulled his buzzing phone out of his coat pocket and looked at the number. Shoving it back in his pocket, Don looked at his concerned look. "Business?"

"Nothing someone else can't handle." Don almost choked and started to sputter laughter.

"Really? You given up?"

"No, just realizing something." Don left it at that as Lex pulled the once again buzzing phone off completely and sat back in the chair and flipped though the magazine some more, actually stopping and reading the articles. He figured he had about an hour to learn everything he could know. Guilt washed over him as he realized how much time he had lost.

The phone rang and Lex stared at Don. Picking up the phone, he listened to the nurse and swiftly headed out of the room. Magnil passed him in the hall and just smiled. Pushing the double doors open, a nurse pointed him into a small corner.

"Your coat needs to stay here. Put on everything in that chair, wash your hands thoroughly and then come see me at the desk." Lex looked at the pile of light blue tarps and booties. His normal reaction of groaning left him when he thought of where he was going.

After covering himself literally head to toe with the blue tarps, the nurse motioned him through a door and closed it behind him. He stepped a couple of steps and heard the voice. "Lex?" she whispered.

She looked ragged and still in pain. He moved gently to Chloe's side and took her outstretched hand. "I'm so sorry I wasn't here. How are you feeling?"

"The drugs are good. I've stopped crying." Her voice was raspy after her several hour ordeal. He pictured her screaming for him, maybe for him to die, and felt a pang in his chest. He wouldn't miss the next one.

"Where is?"

"NICU. He's having some oxygen issues, but they said it's normal." Chloe's haggard body could still notice Lex's immediate stiff response. Pulling on his hand, she tried to comfort him. "It's going to be ok. You're going to have to calm down."

He felt her hand on his face as the words penetrated him. Another child with breathing problems. That would be his fault. "Lex, this has nothing to do with you. He's a preemie. He's 5 pounds, but they say he'll put on weight fast. " Lex silently nodded and Chloe smiled seeing him overwhelmed.

Lex's head turned as the door opened and his hand squeezed Chloe's. "I thought you might want to see Gabriel. We got his oxygen regulated for the time being but we want him on the ventilator as much as possible. The doctor has suggested he stay for a few days."

Lex pushed the chair out of the way to make room next to Chloe. He watched Chloe's eyes well up as the nurse pushed the rolling bassinet up next to the bed. Chloe ran her hand along her tiny son's face and stared at Lex. "Oh God, I don't know how to take care of him."

Standing out of the way, he watched the nurse sit the bed up slightly and pick up Gabriel. "How about we start with a breastfeeding lesson. Typically preemies have issues with sucking and we need to test the reaction." Chloe positioned her hands nervously as the nurse talked her though the steps.

Lex sat in another chair across the room and watched nervously as the nurse recorded the actions from Gabriel. "Is it supposed to hurt?"

"It might, if he's doing it right," the nurse had Chloe pull him off to see liquid drip from the baby's mouth. "I think we have a winner. I would decide whether you are planning to switch of in the middle or do one breast at a time for feeding." Chloe stared at the nurse and she smiled at her. "I'll explain more before you go home." The nurse excused herself.

"You look incredible," Lex whispered across the room.

"Come here then because I'm scared to death." Chloe held Gabriel's head up and barely could breathe from the strange sensation bombarding her chest.

Lex pulled the chair to the other side and ran his hand along his son's leg. He choked at the feeling, so soft and fragile. "He's so small and perfect."

"Like his daddy was," Chloe added. She stared at Gabriel Alexander and felt Lex's smile light up the room even without her looking. His hair was thin and blonde and his eyes were blue; she knew Lex was thanking the heavens. All of which Chloe knew could change.

"Chloe? Look at his face." Chloe looked down at Gabriel and saw Lex sprint out of the room as she pulled Gabe from her chest. Lex ran to the nurse's station and grabbed the arm of the one that had been in the room with them.

"Mr. Luthor?"

"He's turning blue," was all that Lex could get out as the nurse hit a button on the panel in front of her and ran back down the hall.

*************

Chloe walked into the room and saw only Lex's rear sticking out behind the door and smiled. "You know if that's an invitation, I shouldn't waste it." She slapped his ass as she walked through and sat down on the blanket next to Gabe.

"Ok, then you tell me where the jeans he's supposed to wear are?"

"Don't worry about it. Just denim. I thought you were ok with this idea? You're not flaking out on me thinking that it's lame and will ruin your image?"

"No," Lex snapped as he pulled something suitable out of the drawer and threw it across the room at Chloe. "It's just…odd for me."

He sat next to Chloe as she shed Gabe's pajama bottoms and pulled on the denim bottoms. "Odd in I'm making you wear jeans odd or odd in the family picture odd."

"Both," he leaned over and kissed her on the cheek before pulling Gabe up to his chest and standing. "You have the diaper bag?"

"Yeah," Chloe responded as Lex's phone rang. She grabbed Gabe out of his hands and started out of the room. "It's Saturday. Ten minutes and then Magnil cuts in to take a message." Lex nodded as Chloe made her way to the beach.

Lex made his way into the office listening to the person on the other end of the line. "Look, the meeting can be on December 2nd, but I only will be in town for three days." Lex penciled the appointment down and would enter it later on his Blackberry.

Hanging up the phone, he looked at what used to his work area. He barely could find room now to work with the amount of photos that covered this desk and the wall behind him. He smiled thinking about how holding Gabe through the first night home changed things.

He still went away on trips; they couldn't be helped. But Robert had stayed good on his word and Lex rewarded him with several accounts that were overseas and therefore out of the three night rule. That had been the compromise with himself after spending three nights with Gabe; he didn't want to miss little things he was sure his father had never seen him do.

Now seven months old, Gabe had a full head of hair that still had not turned red, thankfully. He was developing as normal except for his small size for his age and a few developmental issues. The doctor was reassuring as Magnil was. Gabe may be a little behind but normal; Lex had finally come to terms with it when Gabe started pulling himself up on the couch albeit a few weeks from the average.

Magnil poked her head in almost ten minutes on the nose. "You know I was sent to check on you?" She looked at Lex's gaze and then at the note on the desk. "That's it for December. You know how Chloe is about the holidays, baby's first everything you know."

"Yeah," he commented quietly, looking at Gabe in his miniature pinstripe suit. They had all gone to the beach Halloween party as Mobsters. The hat stayed on Gabe's head exactly 10 seconds before it was yanked off.

"She's waiting at the beach for you." Lex sighed and figured he would get it over with. He waited for the reaction from everyone connected to Luthorcorp.

*********

"Clark! Come see the Christmas card from Chloe." Lana screamed through the house in suburban Metropolis. She knew he could hear her from the city. She had gotten used to his being gone, but this was too cute to pass up.

"What?" Clark pulled the card out of her hand and smiled. "Looks like he's finally dealing with selling off the company in chunks. They look good."

.com/albums/e...

*********

Lex woke to quiet gurgling coming from the lanai and smiled as Chloe had Gabe out in the cool sun with her the morning of Christmas. They had made it almost a year. That would be tomorrow.

Smiling, he stumbled into the bathroom and looked at the cute Christmas card from Chloe. 'Merry Christmas honey,' it simply stated on the front. Opening the card, a small pen-shaped device with a plus sign prominently displayed stared back at him. Merry Christmas indeed. He was in paradise.

THE END


End file.
